One of the most heartwarming stories that had gone viral fairly recently was the unexpected reunion between the two stars of the 1984 classic, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Harrison Ford and Ke Huy Quan. Quan had made a monster comeback with this year’s abstract martial arts dramedy, Everything, Everywhere, All at Once. Quan will now be in the new Disney+ series, American Born Chinese. As he was at Disney’s D23 to promote the show, this was when he ran into an old friend.
Kyle Buchanan of the New York Times posted to Twitter a preview of an article he has coming out about the wholesome reunion and shared Quan’s story of how the reunion came into fruition.
Quan told him,
“Oh my God. Let me tell you this. We were at the D23 event and I was told Harrison was gonna be there. We’re in this green room with so many actors, producers, and directors, and the person who was assigned to assist me said, ‘Harrison Ford is right outside the green room. Would you want to go say hi?’ I’m thinking, ‘Of course! I haven’t seen him in 38 years.’ So I walk out and I see him about 15 feet away talking to Phoebe Waller-Bridge, they’re there to promote Indy 5. And as I walk close, my heart is pounding. I’m thinking, ‘Is he gonna recognize me? The last time he saw me, I was a little kid.’
And as I get closer, he turns and points his finger at me, and he has that classic, famous, grumpy Harrison Ford look. I go, ‘Oh my gosh, he probably thinks I’m a fan and he’s gonna tell me to not come near him.’ But he looks and points at me and says, ‘Are you Short Round?’ Immediately, I was transported back to 1984, when I was a little kid, and I said, ‘Yes, Indy.’ And he said, ‘Come here,’ and gave me a big hug.
When I wrapped my arms around him, all those wonderful memories I had on the set came flooding back. It felt so comfortable. It was amazing, and he’s an amazing man — one of the most generous men on the planet.”
A photo of the two went viral, and many fans who grew up with the movie shared Quan’s sentiment about the reunion.