Nikki Castillo
On a sunlit afternoon over Zoom, Nikki Castillo beams from a cozy corner of Hollywood, her floral dress layered with a denim shirt, bangs gently framing her flipped-out hair.
She looks and sounds like the colorful character she voices — Lily Pak, the sharp, hilarious heart of Nickelodeon’s newest animated series "Wylde Pak." There’s a warmth in her voice that’s equal parts big sister, performer, and dream-chaser.
Nikki is no stranger to the spotlight, first appearing on TV with Zendaya in "KC Undercover" and later joining the primetime series "Scorpion" as a teen. But "Wylde Pak," a vibrant, multicultural series centered on a blended Asian-American family, feels different.
To her, it feels personal. "Ten-year-old me would never have believed this," she says, reflecting on what it means to lead a show that would have made her younger self feel seen.
Born and raised in San Diego to Filipino parents who logged countless freeway miles to help her chase auditions, Nikki grew up navigating two worlds: the tight-knit Filipino-American community that shaped her, and an entertainment industry still learning how to make space for voices like hers.
Now, she says she's grateful that she's not only in the room — she's now at the center of the story.
The series might be animated, but Nikki's journey is anything but make-believe. This is a story about family, identity, perseverance — and the joy of finally stepping into the spotlight on her own terms.
Q: What does being a lead star of a new show mean to you?
"It really means a lot. Honestly, I don't think 10-year-old Nikki would have imagined me doing this right now. And honestly, just as an Asian American actress as well, to be able to be in this position, it just means a lot."
Q: The show has 26 episodes. Could you walk me through the process of voicing characters, as well as the common challenges and things that people may not know about voice acting?
"Sure. I don't know if they realize that when we record the initial episode, we don't actually get to see, at least for this show, that we're doing right now, we don't get to see the frames or the artwork of what's happening in the script. So a lot of it is just kind of our imagination and what it says in the directions. And then all of a sudden, we see the facial expressions that they put, all of the animatics and everything coming together. It's really amazing to see the final product of it. It's kind of an experiment, the whole thing, really."
Q: I've covered you since 2018 when, at 18, you were in the TV show "Scorpion". I see you persevering despite the ups and downs of the industry. How would you describe your journey as a Filipino American actress?
"It's been different. What I think is cool about being here now, when I was auditioning a little bit earlier in my career, it would always be for like the best friend or for the the neighbor, or never the main character. And it's just great to see an entire family of Asian-American or a blended family, and that's what the show is about."
Q: It's funny and heartwarming. Why do you think it's important to have diverse stories that people can see themselves in?
"I think growing up, I didn't see much of myself in TV and film. And whenever I did, like I mentioned, it was always like the best friend or the comic relief. It was never centered around us. And to be represented in the way that we are with Wylde Pak is just really amazing. I think five-year-old Nikki would have loved watching this show on TV."
Q: I love how you're such a devoted Ate to your younger sister in real life. I'll never forget how you even reached out and invited me to watch your sister in Broadway in "The Lion King." You're a sibling on the show as well.
"I think being a sister, actually being an older sister, helped me kind of portray the role. Even though our situations are somewhat different, where she's having to get to know this brother that she didn't actually grow up with, it's the same kind of sibling rivalry that you get, fighting over your rooms, fighting over your seat on the couch, little things like that. But in the end, coming together and working together as a team, coming together as a family. I think that's what the show is about, and it's really special."
Q: When you're in a show like this, how do you take care of your voice?
"Honestly, Lily's voice is very similar to my own. Actually, the first time my parents saw the clips that they released for the promos and everything, they're like, 'Wait, that just sounds like you. That's what you sound like screaming around the house all day.' So it's not too different. It is a little bit straining to be yelling a lot. But I'm also a singer, and I'm kind of used to it, so it's nothing too different, honestly."
Where there's smoke, there isn't always fire: LA protests misrepresented
As I'm writing this column in Los Angeles where I've lived and worked as a US citizen for more than two decades now, the city is under curfew. Ever since agents from the US federal government descended in Southern California this past week, community members have risen up to protest what they see as unnecessarily cruel treatment and detention of the city's immigrant workers.
One in three LA residents is an immigrant from another country. Los Angeles was originally home to Native Americans and later was under the flags of Spain and Mexico until 1849.
Local, national, and international news outlets have reported detentions of even green-card holders and US citizens. Some were cases of mistaken identity or just in the wrong place at the wrong time, but their harrowing experiences were real. There are circulating images of cars burning and isolated chaos as agitators seize on the moment to cause disorder, but as many residents of Los Angeles have attested in social media through videos, the majority of people on the streets are peacefully protesting.
This is an entertainment town, so of course, there is dancing and singing. There was a multi-denominational prayer gathering on Tuesday. Pockets of protests are sprouting up in neighboring towns as well. Los Angeles is huge so when outsiders say "LA is on fire," that’s a misrepresentation.
And yet, there are an increasing number of videos of law enforcement officials unnecessarily shooting people, even TV reporters, with rubber bullets and being attacked with tear gas.
A colleague who's a green card holder expressed worry about going in the field and being handcuffed, like CNN reporter Jason Carroll was. Another American friend who works in Hollywood was at a small and peaceful protest with others exercising their right to speak up, but found themselves encircled by agents who outnumbered them and kept them from leaving. She shared that they were detained, taken to a precinct, and cited before being released.
It's all terrifying because this kind of state-policing seems largely unprecedented — and it's escalating. Starting in 2016, some Americans have posted their fears about how the fascistic horrors of the novel and TV show "The Handmaid's Tale" could happen in real life in this country. One could imagine how that fear is now compounded as events reminiscent of the story's beginning are now happening.
I begged off last night from attending a Hollywood premiere partly because I didn't feel well, but also because I was worried about the situation in the area. As someone who grew up in the Martial Law years in the Philippines, that deep-seated fear of being hurt in a disturbance — or worse, being taken and disappeared — is deeply ingrained in us.
As it turned out, Hollywood was not affected by the protests that are largely being held in Downtown LA. That's an hour away in traffic. From what I could gather, although some industry events that were scheduled past 8 p.m. were canceled or postponed, Tuesday night's big premiere as well as an award show and several other events all went off without a hitch.
And this is where the sensationalistic tendencies of some media outlets need to be called out. There's an infamous photograph at a US protest in 2017 that circulated in social media where more than a dozen media workers were huddled around a trash receptacle, photographing a small flame inside. The image of that fire — so small that the photographers had to crouch down to take a close-up of it — is used to sell a narrative of widespread lawlessness when that's not the case.
Many below-the-line workers in Hollywood have already been battered by lack of employment due to the slowdown in LA production in recent years because of COVID and the strikes, along with AI and tariffs chaos, have added to the strain. And now, this. Still, overall, as evidenced by their official social media posts, the town's entertainment union workers are standing up for their friends, family, and colleagues affected by the immigration roundups.
But people in Hollywood and Los Angeles are resilient. These are the dreamers who routinely handle crushing defeat and rejections. They know how to make ends meet when projects dry up. They're also raised in the heroic stories of speaking truth to power, grit, and rebellion from films like "Star Wars," "Norma Rae," "Malcolm X," "The Hunger Games," and many others. They know the power of hope and happy endings.
This is a town built on dreams. And right now, it’s dreaming of justice.
"Here in Hollywood" comes out every Friday. Have a question about Hollywood celebrities? Contact Yong on Instagram: @yongchavez