Ken Jeong on 10 Years of 'Masked Singer': I Want This Feeling for the Rest of My Life

Without even realizing it, Ken Jeong has made a life out of doing what's initially uncomfortable. Over a decade ago, he took a huge leap, pivoting from a career as a gastroenterologist to going full-time into acting. After successful turns in Community and The Hangover movies, he's moved into reality TV as a judge for The Masked Singer, which is approaching a landmark tenth season. And even with an established career, he continues to push his own boundaries, putting in heralded dramatic work in the recently released A Great Divide and his biggest role yet in Charlie Day's directorial debut Fool's Paradise.

So it only makes sense that Jeong partners with Cottonelle for a campaign to promote talking about uncomfortable subjects. He is the first "assvertiser" for the toilet paper and wipes brand, described by Cottonelle as "a group of brand ambassadors bold enough to talk publicly about their down there care needs to help normalize the conversation."

Jeong talked with Parade.com about his numerous projects, including the tenth season of Masked Singer and his upcoming role on Season 2 of The Afterparty on Apple TV Plus.

Related: Everything to Know About the Most Recent Season of The Masked Singer

Considering your previous history as a medical professional, what was your reaction the idea of discussing more taboo subjects regarding the human body?

To me, it's all about talking about uncomfortable things. And the job of a physician is to make people feel comfortable talking about uncomfortable things. And even as a med student doing research in gastroenterology and publishing an abstract about said topic and getting all this, it somehow comes full circle with Cottonelle. It's so organic that we're talking about something that everybody has, and everybody's concerned about in very distinct areas. And I think just to raise awareness and to jumpstart that conversation about just not being afraid to talk about "down there" care needs.

I feel like getting out of your comfort zone is something you've been living for a while. You made a big risk leaving medicine to go into comedy full-time. Then you join a show like The Masked Singer, which is all about celebrities getting out of their comfort zone to perform in a way they never have before. So I feel like this is a theme that makes you perfect for this campaign.

Wow, I have not really thought about that. And I think you're absolutely right, just flashing back while you're talking about this. Leaving medicine to go to entertainment was so scary, and it was so nerve-racking. I really didn't know what was going to happen. And then also just pivoting and doing other types of entertainment, you just don't know what's going to happen. You just hope for the best, and you just keep moving forward. And I think I've just learned along the way.

I think Masked Singer has a lot to do with it, just having fun along the way. Just kind of owning what you're doing and embracing it, seeing if you if things can come full circle. I think it's all about adaptability, which is something that I've actually talked about in a convocation address I gave a Cornell. It's just being adaptable and being able to go with the flow.

Well, let's talk about some of your recent projects. And I want to start with The Masked Singer, which is approaching a milestone 10 seasons. What's your reaction to reaching this landmark?

It's still surreal. I was talking to Robin Thicke about it, just like, "Can you believe we've had 10 seasons of this?" It does blow my mind; I've been so blessed to have been a part of so many things, whether it be Hangover, Community, Masked Singer, and everything in between that. It is almost an embarrassment of riches. I'm just very grateful, you know, and I'm very happy. And I'm continuing to have fun; I'm continuing to love what I do. And I think that I just want that feeling for the rest of my life. I remember Will Arnett when he was a guest judge. And I remember he was telling me, "You having fun makes me happy." So I took a lot of pride in that. Seeing me genuinely having a good time on the show is just so important.

Speaking of uncomfortable subjects. Do you know how the Masked Singer contestants go to the bathroom in those extravagant Emmy-winning costumes?

That's a great question. But unfortunately, as a judge, I'm not allowed to leverage my medical experience to help. I don't know where the Unicorn or Rottweiler are with their "down there" needs. I'm prohibited. There is a literal wall between the contestants and the panel. We have to respect our boundaries if you will. But we have a great team down there. [Laughs.]

Speaking of getting out of your comfort zone, let's talk about A Great Divide, which recently had its film festival premiere a few weeks ago. It's a notable departure for you, getting to play a dramatic role. What was it like to expand your skills in such a big way?

First of all, thank you for bringing it up. I really appreciate it. It was a passion project. All the credit goes to Jean Shim, who wrote and directed this, as well as Jeff Yang, who is a dear friend of mine, who also co-wrote the script with me in mind. It's dealing with the very beginning of the pandemic with, for lack of a better term, Asian hate crimes, and the reaction within the Asian community within an Asian-American family to the racism that was occurring in that timeframe that has also been occurring before and since.

To be able to tell a story as earnestly and as dramatically as I did, I've never ever in my career have ever done anything like that before nor since. The monologue in that movie, I get a little emotional thinking about it. It's the best monologue I've ever done. And it's just me. It was from the heart things that I can relate to. Not just my character, but me as a person, as an Asian-American male. It was just an honor to be a part of that storytelling. It's exactly what you said. Never in a million years would I ever think I'd be part of a project with such great intentions. The more I talk about it, the more I appreciate it.

In the recently released Fool's Paradise, you called that your favorite role you've ever played in another interview. Talk to me more about that experience.

I couldn't have done my performance in A Great Divide without Fool's Paradise because I was referencing it so much. Charlie Day's a genius; he's become a really good friend. And he put a lot of faith in me to do that movie. I started with a smaller and more supporting part. And then, he expanded the role based on my performance. He basically made me second lead because of the work that I put in. And to me, we were both just driven by a passion for the project. I'd never done a role like that, playing a publicist. I would even ask my own publicists for advice on how to do things on the red carpet and things like that.

There is so much fun inside show business mechanisms at play, but at the end of the day, it was really about friendship and connection. Charlie is one of the warmest souls you can meet. And the whole movie was coming from such a warm place. And it really helped me prepare for A Great Divide. I thought about Fool's Paradise a lot when I did that monologue. I got choked up doing Fool's Paradise, where you're able to cry on camera and really go deep. And Charlie's challenging me to go deep. And then, Great Divide, I had no choice but to go deep. Again, it's just everything converging at the right time.

You'll be appearing in the upcoming second season of The Afterparty as part of an ensemble of some comedy superstars. Talk to me about that.

This is a star-studded cast. From Paul Walter Hauser—who just won a Golden Globe—to Sam Richardson, Zo? Chao and John Cho, whom I've always wanted to work with, we've become great friends. Anna Konkle from PEN15, Zach Woods. It is, no pun intended, a murderer's row of actors. John Cho coined it best. We're big basketball fans, and it was like the Dream Team '92 of all the stars getting together. What's great is we've all become fast friends. We text each other, and we keep in contact with each other organically. It's truly one of the best projects I've ever been a part of.

As you've outlined, you've got so many different types of projects you've been able to work on. Is there anything you'd ideally want to do next?

To me, even when I quit my medical job, I've never said, "I have to do this, this, and this." I've never had steps in my head. It really is a go-with-the-flow situation. At so many points, you don't know what you're doing next. And sometimes you don't want to know; you want to be surprised. That's the beauty of what we do. It's a world full of pleasant surprises, and as I get older, I live for these moments.

Next, Check Out Ken Jeong's Thoughts on Why The Masked Singer Has Been so successful