‘Hawaii Five-0’ Star Daniel Dae Kim Teases ‘Very Mixed Emotions’ For Chin Ho Kelly

Hawaii Five-0 star Daniel Dae Kim opens up about a new story arc that puts his own character, Chin Ho Kelly, in an impossible situation as his own niece becomes a target. The recent Hawaii Five-0 episode opened up with a lighthearted mood, giving a rare look at the team in relaxed mode as they celebrated Chin’s birthday, but as might have been expected from the fall finale, things soon took a dark turn when a phone call informed Kelly that his niece, Sara, played by Londyn Silzer, had been kidnapped. With Sara’s safe return his only thought, Daniel’s character races off to take action, but it isn’t long before Steve McGarrett (Alex O’Loughlin) catches up to Kelly and pledges the entire team’s resources in bringing Sara home. Still, this is Chin’s mission and a Hawaii Five-0 story arc that Daniel Dae Kim has long awaited.

Hawaii Five-0 Star Daniel Dae Kim Opens Up About The Chin/Sara Dynamic

Daniel Dae Kim told Entertainment Tonight that he’s been looking forward to this new story arc because it emphasizes the concepts of love and family as it relates to Chin Ho Kelly. Kim says those themes haven’t really been explored with Chin before, even though Daniel has been with Hawaii Five-0 since its 2010 debut. Just recently, Kim has been given story arcs that have helped him expand his character more fully, giving him a love interest and now letting him explore a parental relationship with Sara.

That relationship, Kim reminds Hawaii Five-0 fans, is far more complicated than ordinary guardian-child relationships because, while Sara is his blood relative, she is also the child of Chin’s nemesis.

“When he first hears that he’s going to take on the caretaker role for the child, it’s with very mixed emotions,” says Mr. Kim. “But it’s really nice that, because of the way the relationship is written and because of the performance given by Londyn Silzer — she’s quite a talented little actress — it allowed me to tap into my own feelings as a parent and wanting to be protective, to be loving and open in the same way.”

While Kelly’s feelings may be conflicted on one level, Daniel says that his character also has a strong sense of duty, when it comes to family and keeping his loved ones safe from harm. For that reason, Kim says his Hawaii Five-0 counterpart is willing to do anything to reclaim Sara and to keep any harm from coming to her.

Chin Ho Kelly Charges To The Rescue Without The Rest Of The Hawaii Five-0 Team

As TV Guide shares, Chin takes off on a rogue mission without the backup of the rest of the Hawaii Five-0 team in an effort to save Sara because, as Daniel Dae Kim points out, Chin Ho Kelly will do anything for his family. That includes throwing himself to the lions in a trade to save the life of young Sara. Kim says this is his character’s weakness because he will so readily act without thinking; his only concern being that of sparing Sara, in this instance, anymore harm.

“There’s something to be said for this notion that Chin chose this life. He chose the dangers. He chose the risks, and he chose all the obstacles, but Sara didn’t,” says Kim. “And so, in some sense, she’s much less deserving of this kind of a fate than he is.”

Daniel says this story arc will be wrapped up rather quickly when Hawaii Five-0 returns, but he adds that the themes introduced here, particularly in regard of Chin’s reckless behavior, will have long reaching consequences throughout the remainder of the season.

In closing out the interview, Daniel Dae Kim says he’s hoping Sara will remain with the season. Aside from feeling fortunate in being able to work with Londyn Silzer, who Kim describes as a “a pleasure to work with,” the Hawaii Five-0 actor also feels the addition of Sara gives his character a more three-dimensional feel. After seven seasons, Kim says the introduction of family subplots is giving the series a fresher feel and an expanded universe from which to mold greater stories.

Hawaii Five-0 will return with Season 7 on Friday, January 6, 2017, on CBS.

[Featured Image by CBS Productions]