How did you get involved with the Abercrombie & Fitch Magazine photo shoot?

One of the editors of the magazine actually saw me in “Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid.” They called my manager, and they signed me on.

Were you aware of the $40 million discrimination lawsuit Abercrombie recently settled after nine people filed a federal class-action lawsuit against the company in June 2003?

Wow. I had no idea there was a lawsuit or recent settlement. I remember some time ago there were some racially controversial T-shirts that caused a bit of a ruckus in the Asian community, and at the time I was like, ‘Damn it! This bullsh-t again!’

Were there any other people of color on the shoot? Were they familiar with the lawsuit?

Texas Battle — yes, that’s his name — is an African American actor. We were the only two colored folk in the bunch and we became good friends. He had no idea about the lawsuit either.

What was your overall experience at the shoot?

All in all, it was a cool experience. It was a huge production. It seemed more like a film set than a photo shoot.

I think the photographer, Bruce Weber, is more used to dealing with models because he didn’t seem to care about what we thought. Being Asian, it’s always a challenge to make sure we don’t come across in a stereotypical way. Abercrombie’s photos are notorious for being very homo-erotic. I don’t have a problem with homosexuality. But there is a stereotype that Asian men are not masculine. For example, there was the “Gay or Asian?” spoof that ran in Details magazine. And a lot of my fellow Asian actors are constantly receiving auditions for gay roles.

The interview was the most challenging. The guy conducting the interview asked me what kind of martial arts I do. But I wasn’t surprised, as that is a common question I get from a lot of non-Asians.

Another question he asked was, “What do you hope to get out of all this?” I told him that I hope to highlight the beauties of my culture to the world. He asked me what I meant. So I began to elaborate on the fact that there are certain things that the world does not know about Asian Americans. “We are more than just sushi, martial arts, and Jackie Chan movies,” I explained.

This photo of actor Karl Yune appeared in the Spring 2005 issue of Abercrombie & Fitch Magazine.

He kept telling me to explain what I was saying.

I became irritated and very bluntly told him that Asian men are well endowed and like to have sex just like everyone else. “We are a passionate people!” I said. “Primal even. We love to make love! And we can be extremely romantic. And the men are real men! And the women are not meek little submissive things prancing around on their toes waiting to serve their man tea.” I went on and on. I thought I was going to offend him, but he was bellowing with laughter and smiling in awe throughout my whole tirade. At the end, he hugged me and said, “Karl, I promise I will convey your message. It is just as important to me now as it is to you.” The article in the magazine is not what I said verbatim. But he did seem to get my point across.