For millions of fans, Star Wars is a lifelong passion. For actor Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, it has transformed from a childhood escape into an actual career. Known for his beloved role in Kim’s Convenience, Lee recently sat down with Temple of Geek to discuss his deeply rooted history with a galaxy far, far away. As well as the surreal nature of seeing himself immortalized in plastic.
A Spark in 1977
Lee’s journey with Star Wars began in the summer of 1977. He was just five years old when his father, a recent immigrant who spoke very little English, took him and his sister to the movie theater.
“My dad had no idea what the movie was about,” Lee recalls. “He just sort of saw that it was popular and whatnot… and it blew my little mind. I mean, that was the beginning. That was the end.”
That single theater experience ignited a lifelong fire that shaped Lee’s imagination and his ultimate love for storytelling. However, as an Asian-Canadian child growing up in the late 70s and 80s, Lee never imagined he could actually be a part of that world.
“For the longest time, I never thought I could be in Star Wars because A, I wasn’t an actor, B, I didn’t know I could be an actor, but C, I never saw any Asians in space,” Lee explains, noting that the only exception was a briefly seen B-wing pilot who was instantly shot down in Return of the Jedi.
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee on His Lifelong Star Wars Obsession and the Road to Acting
When Lee eventually discovered the craft of acting, he committed to it wholeheartedly despite having no initial training. “I often say I was just too stubborn to quit,” he jokes.
Decades later, that stubbornness paid off ultimately: Lee was cast as Captain Carson Teva, a New Republic X-wing pilot, cementing his place in the Star Wars canon. Having the franchise on his resume has provided a massive boost to his mid-career confidence as he looks toward future goals like writing, directing, and producing.
Long before he put on the physical flight suit, Lee was an avid collector of the merchandise. Because his parents were working hard to build a life as immigrants, money was tight when the original movie debuted, meaning Lee couldn’t own the initial wave of Kenner toys. That changed during the era of The Empire Strikes Back. Following a successful year at his parents’ fish and chips restaurant in Calgary, Alberta, Lee hit the Christmas jackpot.
“I got Han Solo Hoth edition… I got an AT-ST. I got the Millennium Falcon. I got the Star Destroyer playset,” Lee reminisces. “I was in heaven. And I played so hard with all of those toys.”
For Lee, the hobby is a deliberate attempt to reconnect with that specific childhood innocence and sense of limitless possibility. “It’s good to just sort of, you know, slow down, touch the grass, unplug from your phone, and just play with your toys. No shame,” he says.
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee on Being Immortalized in Plastic
As a collector who now fills his 20-foot basement display unit with high-end replica helmets, lightsabers, and Hot Toys figures, the arrival of his own merchandise has been entirely surreal.
The process started with a 1/6 scale bust by Gentle Giant, followed by a Hasbro Black Series helmet. As a fan who grew up with traditional action figures, Lee kept playfully pestering Hasbro for something specific. “Hey, where’s my action figure, guys? Like, I’ve got a bust, but I ain’t got no legs, right? Like Lieutenant Dan.”
The dream finally came true when Carson Teva was released in the 3.75-inch Vintage Collection line, complete with the retro-style card back and blister pack.
“To see a dude that looks like me… I’m floating,” Lee shares. “To be immortalized in plastic in that way, especially since those were my favorite toys growing up… there are so many complete circle moments that I’ve been living over the last 10 years. It feels like a dream or a fairy tale.”
