‘Accused’ Star Jamie Chung on Tackling Drama With Ken Jeong & Collaborating With Michael Chiklis for ‘Eugene’s Story’ (Exclusive)

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Accused Season 2, Episode 7, “Eugene’s Story .”]

Accused‘s second season is coming to a close and packing an emotional punch with the tragic entry titled “Eugene’s Story.” The episode, starring Ken Jeong and Jamie Chung follows Eugene and his wife Grace, the latter of which has a dark secret.

As viewers see in the episode, Grace’s ex resurfaces and threatens to reveal her involvement in a past robbery that resulted in a death, if she doesn’t help him get back on his feet after doing time in prison for the crime. Grace does her best to help and keep her husband Eugene out of the situation, but white lies build up to spark suspicion and distrust.

Ultimately, Grace confesses the full situation to Eugene, who accepts her, but when she seemingly robs her dad’s store with her ex and runs off, Eugene goes after them with a gun, intending to threaten Grace’s ex and take her home. Unfortunately, those plans backfire when a scuffle with the other man leads Eugene to accidentally pull the trigger shooting Grace who eventually dies from her wounds.

Below, Chung opens up about playing opposite Jeong, capturing such intense drama onscreen, collaborating with director Michael Chiklis, and much more.

Fox

What drew you to the role of Grace and Accused as a show?

Jamie Chung: I’m good friends with Michael Chiklis and when I saw Season 1 come out, it got so much hype. The cinematography was beautiful, and the storytelling was tragic. It didn’t feel like a show that has ever graced network [TV] before. I like that they took a spin on a court case because it’s told from the perspective of the defendant. So I thought that was interesting and unique. When I read “Eugene’s Story,” it was in a place where I just needed something creatively to sink my teeth into, and it kind of just fell into my lap. God bless Michael Chiklis for that. He really pitched me for this role because he had mentioned to casting that they needed someone with a dark past who’s kind of like rough around the edges and who’s now a born-again Christian, you know. So I thought it was quite the compliment that he thought that I can have such range.

What was your reaction to learning you’d play Ken Jeong’s wife in the episode?

I love Ken. He’s always been the nicest guy in Hollywood, and having this San Francisco connection with his wife, I thought was pretty neat. It was perfect. I was so excited to play his wife because after reading the script, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Ken do anything so dramatic. And he’s so disarming with his comedy. But you know, it was really fun to see him step out of his comfort zone and try some drama. It was really nice to cheer him on.

Did Grace care for Eugene as much as he believed?

Absolutely. I don’t think the story would have worked if she didn’t care for him. She cared for him deeply. I think it’s the kind of love where you realize this is as good as it gets. It’s because of you that I’m able to turn my life around. It’s because he’s the beacon of light, and then also for her to have this solace knowing her father is also being taken care of by Eugene. They have a great relationship. It really does bring her a lot of peace. And I know that she wants to stay on this straight and narrow, and she wants to move forward. And unfortunately, she just has a part of her past that just will not let her

Was she going to run away happily if Eugene hadn’t interrupted the plan following the robbery?

Oh, absolutely no way. She didn’t want to leave, but it was the only way to protect Eugene and protect her father. If she left the city with her ex, and got out of there then I felt like that was the only way to keep them safe. Otherwise, he would keep badgering for more money, he would really wreak havoc.

Did Eugene receive a fair punishment?

I mean, it’s premeditated. He brought the gun. He was going to save me. But no… He got the s**t end of the sick. I mean, for my ex to lie to save his own ass, it all makes sense that he would do that, but unfortunately, I do think that it was a tragic accident. I don’t think that [Eugene] had any intention of letting me leave, but I don’t think that he would have had the heart to kill someone.

Grace’s death is tragic, what was it like filming such an intense sequence?

I don’t think that she saw it coming. I think the most dramatic point for Grace was having to tell [Eugene] the full truth. Throughout the episode, she tells him little white lies and then only tells him a quarter of the truth. It’s so much shame that she’s been holding on to and so much guilt that she finally has to show her husband Eugene her full self. And I think it’s quite vulnerable and so difficult. And I think that’s the scene I had to work on the most in order to prepare. It’s such an emotional scene you’re the reason why another person has died. You have every reason to be in jail and serve time, and you’ve kind of been living this fake life, when, in actuality, you should have been the one in jail as well, and then to still have [Eugene] fully accept me for who I am, to love me no matter what, through thick and thin. I think that was quite a beautiful revelation. Ken just did things so gracefully.

Religion plays a big part in the episode, why was it so important to include that element?

I know for my family in particular, there were a lot of missions that came right before the Korean War to convert Koreans to become Catholic and Christians. And when a lot of the families immigrate, quite often in all the cities, it’s the church communities that you flock to. Korean church communities and that’s exactly where my family found their community. So I think it really is very specific to Eugene’s story in particular. It kind of goes hand in hand.

What does it say about Eugene that Grace’s father sits and supports him in court following her death?

I think he really does love Eugene. I think he truly believes that it was an accident. I think he’s very aware of how dangerous my ex really is. And I think it just goes to show that he knows that Eugene would never do anything to hurt me. He loved Grace with his whole heart, and he would have done anything to save me.