Why Kumail Nanjiani should hire writer wife Emily V. Gordon to be his publicist
PASADENA, Calif. – Actor and comedian Kumail Nanjiani is fully capable of representing himself, but his wife, Emily V. Gordon, really knows how to punch up his life story.
When the "Silicon Valley" star, a Pakistani immigrant, was asked the reason for his success by reporters at Television Critics Association Sunday for Apple TV+'s immigrant-focused "Little America" (now streaming), Nanjiani credited fortunate circumstances. "I do think the right place, the right time and luck do have a lot to do with it, that I've gotten to know the right people."
Gordon, who received an Oscar screenplay nomination and Film Independent Spirit Award with Nanjiani for "The Big Sick," a movie about the beginning their relationship, jumped in, praising her husband.
"Kumail works very hard. He's worked very hard to get the success he had. My thought is even if he was still an open mic comedian in Chicago, like he was when I met him, he would still be deserving of a 'Little America' story,'" she said.
After making that serious point, she closed with a comic kicker referencing his recent buff body transformation for a Marvel movie role: "It's not just about (him) being … very well-muscled."
When another executive producer threw out a comment about Nanjiani being "the world's sexiest man," a faux indignant Nanjiani pointed to his head and said, "I'm up here."
Amid the levity, Nanjiani and Gordon, appearing via satellite, and their "Little America" producing colleagues talked about the significance of the show, which dramatizes stories of real immigrants in the U.S. They said they wanted to keep the focus on the immigrants, rather than make a larger argument about U.S. policy surrounding immigration.
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"From the beginning, we said this is not a political show. We're not presenting an agenda," Nanjiani said. "However, just saying that immigrants are human beings with hopes and desires like everybody else … is a radical statement, even though it's very self-evident."
He said the series is trying to focus on immigrants as individuals, not as numbers. "So many times, the immigration debate happens in the abstract. … Every single one of them is a human being …"
"… Who has a story, who has a favorite cereal, who has a favorite grandparent," Gordon said.
Nanjiani also noted how "Little America" shows off places often not seen in the national media.
Growing up in Pakistan, the "America I knew was from the movies, which is L.A. and New York," he said. "When I moved, I moved to Iowa and I remember feeling, 'Oh, you guys do not advertise this part' in pop culture."