Wendy van Dijk

Wendy van Dijk (born 22 January 1971 in Weesp) is a Dutch actress and television presenter. She's best known for her portrayal as Ushi Hirosaki, a hapless Japanese journalist featured in both a series of Dutch television shows and a theatrical film.

Television
Van Dijk presented the show Hart in Aktie between 2000 and 2006. In 2006, Van Dijk was a contestant on Dancing On Ice. In 2007 and 2008, she hosted the Dutch edition of Idols. The Netherlands edition of X Factor was the replacer of Idols, which Van Dijk has also hosted all 5 seasons of. Van Dijk co-hosted all 6 seasons of The Voice of Holland together with Martijn Krabbé, as well as all seasons of The Voice Kids. From 2011 on, she hosted all three seasons of the Dutch TV show Obese, in which she and professional coaches and doctors help morbid obese people to successfully lose weight in 3 months. Since 2013, Van Dijk has been hosting the game show Wie ben ik? (Who am I?).

Ushi Hirosaki
Van Dijk first appeared as Ushi in the early 2000s in Gene & Ushi, a program that aired on the Dutch television channel SBS 6. While appearing as Ushi, the actress puts on makeup, glasses, wears a "buckteeth" dental appliance and conceals her blonde hair under a dark wig. Segments featuring Ushi typically consist of Borat-style pranks on international celebrities while Van Dijk pretends to be a reporter for Good Morning Tokyo, a fictional television show. Among those interviewed by Ushi: Adele, Donny Osmond, Geri Halliwell, Lionel Richie, Gino Vannelli, Shannen Doherty, Billy Crawford and La Toya Jackson. The character's catchphrase is: "Solly, my Engrish is not so very bad!"

Ushi has inspired similar characters that have appeared on other television stations across Europe. Van Dijk appeared as Ushi again in Ushi Must Marry, a theatrical film released in the Netherlands on 14 February 2013.

Not only did Van Dijk feature the role of Ushi, she also appeared as Dushi, an Antillian weather forecaster for TeleCuraçao in the television series Ushi & Dushi in 2009. A year later, in 2010, the new television series Ushi & Loesie was aired, featuring Loesie, a stereotypical Amsterdam girl. Ushi, Dushi and Loesie all rhyme. Between 2011 and 2012, Van Dijk produced the television series Ushi & The Family, in which Ushi features again, as well as the Family Leenders, consisting of grandma Betsie Leenders, mother Gerda Leenders, daughter Bo Leenders and Esmeralda, all living in Tegelen. The concept of all shows stayed the same, since Ushi would interview non-Dutch celebrities, while the other characters did the same with famous Dutchmen.

Controversy over Ushi
Ushi's mannerisms and personality are based on common Asian and Japanese stereotypes. Much like Zwarte Piet, a popular but controversial holiday character in the Netherlands, Ushi has been the subject of criticism. Bloggers have derided Ushi and often describe her as a cruel and racist "yellowface" caricature.

A review of Ushi Must Marry in the Dutch newspaper Het Parool drew further attention to the more controversial aspects of the character. "Then there are the racial stereotypes," wrote reviewer Mike Peek. "Sacha Baron Cohen as Borat makes you laugh at the people he approaches. His role is a cover. But in Ushi Must Marry the characters themselves are the main source of humor. Who laughs at a Japanese person unfamiliar with 'splaakgeblek,' especially in the year 2013?"

NRC Handelsblad film critic André Waardenburg went even further and called the movie a "new low in Dutch film history." Following its release in theaters, Ushi Must Marry was widely panned by other film critics and it also sparked a discussion about the continued popularity of racial caricatures in Dutch culture.