Close Menu
  • Login
  • Support Us
  • Newsletter
  • News
  • Features
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
    • Video Games
      • Previews
      • PC
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X/S
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Xbox One
      • PS4
      • Tabletop
    • Film
    • TV
    • Anime
    • Comics
      • BOOM! Studios
      • Dark Horse Comics
      • DC Comics
      • IDW Publishing
      • Image Comics
      • Indie Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • Oni-Lion Forge
      • Valiant Comics
      • Vault Comics
  • Podcast
  • More
    • Event Coverage
    • BWT Recommends
    • RSS Feeds
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Support Us
But Why Tho?
RSS Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube
Trending:
  • Features
    Battlefield 6 Classes - Support trailer image

    Battlefield 6 Really Wants You To Play Support (But Knows You Won’t)

    07/31/2025
    Battlefield 6 Multiplayer Reveal promotional image

    Battlefield 6 Classes, Maps, And More: Everything You Need To Know

    07/31/2025
    A glimpse at all the upcoming Star Wars stories coming to the galaxy

    Star Wars Stories: What We Learned At SDCC 2025

    07/25/2025
    Blindspot episode still

    It’s been 5 years since ‘Blindspot’ ended. Why haven’t you watched it yet?

    07/24/2025
    Strange Scaffold

    Strange Scaffold Summer Showcase Delivers Bizarre And Brilliant Games

    07/22/2025
  • Fantasia Festival
  • K-Dramas
  • Netflix
  • Switch 2 Games
But Why Tho?
Home » Interviews » INTERVIEW: Ah Toy, Power, and ‘Warrior’ with Olivia Cheng

INTERVIEW: Ah Toy, Power, and ‘Warrior’ with Olivia Cheng

Kate SánchezBy Kate Sánchez09/23/20203 Mins ReadUpdated:02/26/2024
Olivia Cheng
Share
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Reddit WhatsApp Email

Cinemax’s Warrior was one of my favorite series last year as a fan and as a critic. Based on an original concept by Bruce Lee, the show was created by Jonathan Tropper and Justin Lin and blends drama, the Old West, and martial arts. Set during the Tong Wars of San Francisco’s Chinatown in the second half of the 19th century. it follows martial arts prodigy Ah Sahm, a Chinese immigrant who arrives in the City of Lights under mysterious circumstances. Once he proves his prowess as a fighter, Sahm becomes a hitman for one of Chinatown’s most powerful organized crime families. That said, while Ah Sahm is the central character of Warrior, he is surrounded by powerful female characters that push the story of the series farther and offer up a look at the intersections of race, gender, and class. This is no truer than in Ah Toy, the most powerful businesswoman in Chinatown, who just so happens to be a madam. Portrayed by Olivia Cheng, Ah Toy is a powerful woman who understands how the world sees her, both within her Chinese American community and among the white men she deals with.

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here

I was lucky enough to get the chance to speak with Olivia Cheng before the launch of Warrior Season 2. In this interview, we discuss the series’ relevancy during the current rise of anti-Asian hate crimes and how the series introduces audiences to Asian American history. Warrior does this in multiple ways, but referencing specifical historical moments to Ah Toy herself, a character based on a real woman of the same name. A self-proclaimed history buff, Cheng explains how she knew the history of San Francisco ahead of shooting the series, but dove even further into by learning more about Ah Toy, of which there isn’t much written from her perspective.

In this interview, Cheng maps out Ah Toy’s power and how she uses her intelligence of how the world sees her to her advantage, putting on a mask for the public, and using the limited tools that society has given her – namely, her beauty. To explain the point, we dive into the costumes of Warrior and how Ah Toy embodies high fashion and stands at the center of each scene. While the most powerful in the show, she doesn’t push away any of her femininity and instead wields it like a weapon. That said, Ah Toy is also a formidable swordswoman and exacts justice through violence when pushed into it. This sets her apart from other characters on the show.

Finally, Cheng explains the importance of Warrior to representation and storytelling overall.  Hit play on the audio above to hear our full interview with Olivia Cheng and dive even further into Ah Toy and the world of Warrior.

With the series entering its final season with the dissolution of Cinemax, there is hope for a third season via a petition started by fans which can be found here. Season 2 of Warrior airs October 2, 2020 on Cinemax. You can follow Olivia Cheng at @ThatOliviaCheng on Twitter and Instagram to keep up with her projects and her work on the series.

Warrior is available now on MAX (formerly HBO Max) and Netflix.

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Email
Previous ArticleREVIEW: ‘WWE 2K Battlegrounds’ Could Have Been More (Xbox One)
Next Article ADVANCED REVIEW: ‘Chainsaw Man,’ Volume 1
Kate Sánchez
  • Website
  • X (Twitter)
  • Instagram

Kate Sánchez is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of But Why Tho? A Geek Community. There, she coordinates film, television, anime, and manga coverage. Kate is also a freelance journalist writing features on video games, anime, and film. Her focus as a critic is championing animation and international films and television series for inclusion in awards cycles. Find her on Bluesky @ohmymithrandir.bsky.social

Related Posts

Daniel Marin as Namor in Marvel Rivals

Namor’s Latinidad Is Personal For ‘Marvel Rivals’ Voice Actor Daniel Marín

08/01/2025
World of Warcraft The War Within Ghosts of Karesh But Why Tho

‘The War Within’ Patch 11.2 Addresses Raid Trash, Magic-Focused Comps, And More

07/31/2025
Soulframe But Why Tho 9

Soulframe Developers Discuss Community And The Game’s Celtic Inspirations

07/29/2025
Key art for Kim Sung-yoon's Fragment

FANTASIA 2025: Kim Sung-yoon Shifts Our Focus On Crime In ‘Fragment’

07/25/2025
Jermaine Fowler in Steve Pink's Terrestrial

FANTASIA 2025: Steve Pink Discusses Embracing A New Genre in ‘Terrestrial’

07/23/2025
MOP Classic promotional gameplay still

‘Mists of Pandaria Classic’ Recreated the Vale of Eternal Blossom for a True MOP Experience

07/22/2025

Get BWT in your inbox!

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter and get the latest and greated in entertainment coverage.
Click Here
TRENDING POSTS
Wildgate promotional key art
9.0
PC

REVIEW: ‘Wildgate’ Is Co-Op Space Mayhem Done Right

By Adrian Ruiz07/25/2025Updated:07/30/2025

Built for friends and tuned for competition, Wildgate is messy in the best way: smart, surprising, and bursting with room to grow.

Glass Heart
7.0
TV

REVIEW: ‘Glass Heart’ Offers Messy, Musical Catharsis

By Allyson Johnson07/22/2025

The musical drama series ‘Glass Heart’ soars when it focuses on the epic performances of it’s fictional band, TENBLANK.

Simon in An Honest Life But Why Tho
3.5
Film

REVIEW: ‘An Honest Life’ Is Terribly Dishonest About Its Own Politics

By Jason Flatt08/02/2025

An Honest Life is an overly severe misfire about a law student who falls in with anarchist burglars that can’t decide who it resents more.

Black Women Anime — But Why Tho (9) BWT Recommends

10 Black Women in Anime That Made Me Feel Seen

By LaNeysha Campbell11/11/2023Updated:12/03/2024

Black women are some of anime’s most iconic characters, and that has a big impact on Black anime fans. Here are some of our favorites.

But Why Tho?
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest RSS YouTube Twitch
  • CONTACT US
  • ABOUT US
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER
  • Review Score Guide
Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small contribution.
Written Content is Copyright © 2025 But Why Tho? A Geek Community

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

But Why Tho Logo

Support Us!

We're able to keep making content thanks to readers like YOU!
Support independent media today with
Click Here