Inside Gold Gala 2026: Jet Li, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Charles Melton, Simu Liu Honored Throughout Glitzy Celebration of API Changemakers

Expertise and executives throughout a number of types of media, leisure and enterprise gathered in downtown Los Angeles Saturday for Gold House’s fifth annual Gold Gala.

The annual gala, held on the Music Middle in DTLA, is a celebration of Asian Pacific changemakers throughout industries. Legendary martial arts actor Jet Li, actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Beef star Charles Melton, actor Simu Liu, Olympic gold medalist Eileen Gu and Flex CEO Revathi Advaithi have been introduced with onstage honors at Saturday’s occasion.

The night, beforehand dubbed the “Asian Met Gala,” had no scarcity of stars. Gold Home co-founder and CEO introduced again his tongue-in-cheek kick-off speech that known as out a number of the night time’s greatest stars within the context of reminding them to get to sit down down so this system may start. The routine elicited laughs amongst the group gathered on the venue’s out of doors courtyard and was efficient in getting all of the chatty visitors to search out their seats.

Gold Gala’s 2026 onstage program kicked off with remarks from Saturday Night time Stay alum Bowen Younger, whose introduction was half celebration and half roast. The comic joked with the group that he was completely satisfied to be part of the “group audition for Beef season three” — the present’s creator, Lee Sung Jin, was in attendance, later telling the group how a Gold Home occasion seating association helped Lee land Melton as season two’s star. He additionally took a playful dig at Chen, likening the founder’s relationship life to the close by Chinatown neighborhood as they’d each “survived upheaval, disease and gentrification.”

Yang celebrated the API neighborhood’s wins — “the Wasians are making music videos together, so cute” — and “failures” — “Eric Nam did not win The Traitors, [and] I’m on track to lose my sixth Emmy.” The comic contemplated if the neighborhood had moved previous illustration and into possession.

“Ownership of our stories, ownership of our space and ownership of the fact that white women are so bored they need Mahjong more than we do,” Yang continued, met with laughs from the group. “I’m obsessed with them, by the way, because you know they say shit like ‘MSG gives me headaches.’”

KPop Demon Hunters star EJAE launched a video on this yr’s leisure and media honorees from Gold Home’s Gold 100 energy listing. Heated Rivalry breakout Hudson Williams, Grammy award-winning singers Kehlani, Laufey and Lola Younger, actress Lola Tung, director Chloe Zhao and woman group KATSEYE have been amongst a number of the leisure figures honored within the video.

Liu was introduced with the Gold Mogul honor by filmmakers Destin Daniel Cretton and James Wan. Gu, essentially the most embellished freestyle skier, accepted the Gold Affect honor, which was introduced to her by WNBA star Candace Parker and EVP and chief buyer officer of Marriott Worldwide Peggy Roe. Chopra Jonas obtained the inaugural World Vanguard Honor, in the meantime Advaithi, CEO of Flex, obtained the inaugural Forbes Gold honor.

Melton, who performs Austin in season two of Beef, was introduced with the inaugural Gold Creative Achievement honor by Beef creator Lee Sung Jin and actress Da’Vine Pleasure Randolph. The actor joked that he and Randolph grew to become shut in the course of the 2025 awards season, wherein Randolph swept all awards besides one, the award that Melton himself gained. He additionally thanked Lee for his collaboration and friendship.

Li, a legendary martial artist and actor, obtained the Gold Legend honor award. Maggie Q and Terry Crews have been the primary to take the stage, introducing Li’s daughter, Jane Li, and the daughter of Bruce Lee, Shannon Lee.

When he took the stage, Li preached concerning the significance of residing a cheerful and wholesome life. He urged these within the crowd to not solely care for their bodily well being but in addition their psychological well being. Li defined that he would proceed to assist folks all through his life.

Chen returned to the stage to shut out the night time, delivering an impassioned speech about neighborhood and loneliness. He then ushered the group into the close by afterparty with a needle drop and streamer blast to KATSEYE’s “Pinky Up.” Yang appeared essentially the most excited within the crowd by the music selection, performing the woman group’s choreography in his seat because it performed.

Take a peek contained in the 2026 Gold Gala and the afterparty beneath.