Fifteen years ago, John Cho touched down in Park City, Utah, as part of the ensemble of Justin Lin‘s edgy crime drama, Better Luck Tomorrow, which had its controversial premiere at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. This past January, the Korean-American actor returned to Sundance with a far more contemplative — rather than contentious — film, the quiet character study Columbus. Filmed on location in Columbus, Indiana, a Midwestern mini-marvel of architectural design, the movie stars Cho and Haley Lu Richardson as a tourist and townie respectively, who bond over their conflicted feelings about their futures and their families.

While Cho’s father lies in a coma in a local hospital, Richardson worries about pursuing her career ambitions outside of Columbus and leaving her single mother behind. Directed by video essayist, Kogonada, Columbus, which opens in theaters on August 4, received strong reviews at Sundance from both critics and audiences.

“I had people coming up to me after screenings who were visibly moved,” Cho tells Yahoo Movies. “My impression is that they really enjoyed being dislodged from where they were in their lives, and being temporarily put into this little adventure in a very unique space.” We spoke with Cho about his time in Columbus, his future with the Star Trek franchise, and his star turn in the eye-catching #StarringJohnCho Internet meme.

Better Luck Tomorrow premiered at Sundance 15 years ago, and made a big splash at the time. Looking back on it now, what’s your favorite memory of being part of that film?

I think it’s just participating in a film that mattered at a time when film mattered. I feel like independent cinema right now doesn’t command the cultural authority that it once did. Not to say that it won’t come back, but I worry about independent film and its place in American culture. There’s so many tentpole blockbusters, and it seems like culture’s shifting toward television. Better Luck Tomorrow was a small movie and didn’t make a bajillion dollars, but it felt like it was a movie that had something to say at a time when we looked to independent cinema to give voice to some concern.

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The film encountered some controversy after its premiere, and Roger Ebert memorably rose to its defense from the audience. What was it like to be at the center of that argument?

I missed that screening because I had the flu! But I remember hearing about it. It’s a badge of honor to be defended by Roger Ebert. And you know what? I’d consider it a badge of honor to be slammed by Roger Ebert. He’s my dude. If Roger Ebert has an opinion on you, you’re somebody, I say.

Having worked with Justin Lin on his first film, was it fun to reconnect with him on the set of Star Trek: Beyond 14 years later?

Yeah, it was really cool. It brings up so many emotions. You know one, I’m so surprised that I’m still here. I’m not surprised that Justin’s here, but I’m still surprised that I’m still around! And as an Asian-American, it’s cool to have a fellow Asian-American be at the helm of something that big and something that important to me. It’s like running into an old pal on the street years later and embracing. It was special. Although it does also mark the passage of time, which is always, which is complicated. It was like, “Oh, right. We’re not young anymore.”

He came onboard Beyond after some behind the scenes turbulence including director changes and new screenplays. Did he bring some stability to the film when it came time to shoot? And was it hard, as an actor, dealing with that kind of uncertainty?

Well, I felt good, because I knew him and I felt like he was going to deliver a good movie. Unless he had changed a lot and was not the guy I once knew, I felt like we were gonna be in good stead. So that lent some stability to it on my end. I was a little worried, not so much about the personnel change itself, but what the personnel changes indicate. Are we not agreeing on what kind of movie we’re making? Are we conflicted about something? Is there internal fighting? That, to me, is the thing rather than the personnel change itself. I didn’t get answers to those questions, because who do you ask? But that’s what I was worried about.