Raising Our Voices: A Conversation With ‘The Cleaning Lady’ Showrunners | THR Video
FOX's 'The Cleaning Lady' showrunners Miranda Kwok and Jeannine Renshaw on why the show's Filipino-Cambodian family appeals to a broad audience.
Presented by 'The Cleaning Lady' on FOX.
Presented by 'The Cleaning Lady' on FOX.
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00:00 I mean, there's just not very many shows on network television that are making a statement.
00:05 Yes, it's entertaining. Yes, we have that crime element.
00:08 But really, the fact that we're able to put cultures on screen,
00:12 that people haven't had that disability,
00:15 it's really opened things up in a way.
00:18 And not only for people who have experienced it, but other people can learn from it.
00:28 Hi, I'm Miranda Kwok. I am the showrunner, developer, and executive producer of The Cleaning Lady.
00:34 Hi, I'm Jeannine Renshaw. I'm Miranda's co-showrunner, executive producer.
00:38 I never really started out wanting to be a writer, but I had stories I wanted to tell,
00:42 and I had messages that I wanted to lean into and to put out in the world.
00:46 There's always obstacles as a female who's trying to tell stories that are important and mean something.
00:52 Just working really hard to put the stories that I care about on screen.
00:56 And I think it's still surprising to me to have landed in this position.
01:01 I feel very grateful for the opportunities.
01:04 But really just believing in the stories I was telling.
01:07 There's nothing you could have done, Tony.
01:09 No more.
01:10 Could have called the police, the FBI, something, anything.
01:15 It's an underdog story. It's about somebody who's marginalized,
01:18 somebody who doesn't normally have a voice,
01:20 who, you know, is always fighting for resources, fighting to be heard.
01:24 And then to have an Asian woman at the helm and a Southeast Asian woman was also really exciting
01:30 because, you know, that's a perspective we've never heard before, especially on network television.
01:35 And also, you know, kind of being able to turn it into something like a female Breaking Bad.
01:41 Sort of exploring a genre that we normally see from a white male perspective,
01:45 seeing it from a different point of view that's, you know, a person who's a doctor and a mother
01:51 and comes from a different background, is regarded differently.
01:54 And the extra obstacles that that brings and being able to sort of show her resilience and fortitude
02:01 and resourcefulness and strength.
02:03 You know, she's the smartest person in every room.
02:06 And how she's able to, you know, maneuver through all her challenges.
02:11 Look, if I can make myself useful, I can protect us all.
02:15 Then what?
02:15 How long are you going to work for her and do whatever she wants you to do?
02:18 Until I find her weakness?
02:20 There's so many different cultural minorities on the show.
02:23 And that speaks to a lot of people.
02:24 It speaks to a lot of people who come from different places, different, you know,
02:29 not only cultural backgrounds, but socioeconomic backgrounds.
02:32 So there's really something for everyone in the show.
02:35 Everything out here tells you a story of someone who had the guts to do this.
02:40 Okay? Who risked everything to get a better life than what they had.
02:43 People like Camila and Giselle Hunt, they came from nothing.
02:46 The universal part of family is really, really important.
02:49 Like, I think the things that a mother will do for her kid and for her family
02:53 is something that anybody can relate to.
02:55 And every mom, in a way, is a superhero of their own.
02:58 People talk about sacrifice and your parents' sacrifice, but what does it actually mean?
03:03 You gotta let all of this go. Now.
03:06 I can't, Fee.
03:08 If Ramona had anything to do with this, she has to pay.
03:12 We have this great action show that this wonderful family, who's a beautiful family,
03:16 who, you know, we're interested in every one of those characters,
03:19 and yet they're fighting against discrimination and poverty and being a woman and, you know,
03:25 being someone who feels that they don't belong.
03:27 Every time someone comes up to me and says, "Thank you for creating this show.
03:31 Thank you for putting Tagalog, you know, on screen,"
03:34 you know, there were tears in my parents' eyes when they saw, like,
03:38 our name was actually being used on a TV show.
03:40 It has had so much impact.
03:42 That has been, honestly, the biggest reward of the show.
03:46 We're able to put cultures on screen that people haven't had that visibility,
03:52 not only culturally, but also people who are undocumented,
03:55 people who are afraid to tell their stories.
03:58 And yet, so many people have experienced similar journeys and similar prejudices against them
04:04 or struggles because of it.
04:06 90% of our audience is actually non-Asian.
04:10 Shows that it's really opened people's perspectives a lot because of the show.
04:16 [Music]