John Cho Turns Villain in Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother
John Cho plays a Texas pastor with a violent streak opposite Mahershala Ali in Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, which opens in theatres on Sept. 25. Cho's Christian pastor Hwan is the villain of the story, set against Ali's Latif, according to Variety.
Latif is a devout Muslim hitman working in Houston. Hwan leads a congregation that has declared holy war on porn, a conflict that drives the two men together, Variety reported.
The film is directed by Bassam Tariq as a Texas-set action drama. It screened at the Toronto Film Festival ahead of its theatrical release, according to Yahoo.
Variety in a Sept. 14 review described the film as a blistering spiritual actioner built around a leading role for Ali, in a notice published ahead of opening (Variety). The Toronto screening puts it on a familiar path. Festivals often act as a launchpad, giving distributors a first public reaction before a date in cinemas.
Cho is widely known for lighter early work. He started on screen credited as MILF Guy #2 in American Pie.
He later played helmsman Hikaru Sulu in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek films. In 2018 he became the first Asian American actor to topline a Hollywood thriller with Searching, Variety reported. A topline means his name was above the title as the central selling point.
What makes this stand out for audiences is the switch. Cho, long cast as the likeable lead or sidekick, here plays the opposing force to Ali's hitman, a Texas pastor whose faith comes with menace, as detailed by The Hollywood Reporter. It is a straight villain turn, and it arrives in a wide theatrical release rather than a limited run.
