Ming-Na

Born: 20th November 1967
Where: Coloane Island, Macau

Born on the island of Macau, Ming-Na Wen moved to Hong Kong at a young age, and by four years old went to live in New York with her mother and brother.

Five years later, they moved to Pittsburgh to open their family restaurant, the Chinatown Inn.

Ming-Na (translated her name means enlightenment) went to college in her hometown at Carnegie Mellon University and graduated in theatre before moving back to New York.

She appeared in a number of off-Broadway shows before getting her first big acting job in 1988 on the soap As The World Turns, becoming the first Asian actor in a contract role on a soap.

Ming-Na made her breakthrough performance in The Joy Luck Club as part of a strong ensemble of Asian actresses.

When she needed a ride to the premiere of the film, her acting instructor sent one of his students, Eric Michael Zee. The two started dating in 1994 after Ming-Na moved permanently to L.A. and married in 1995.

After Street Fighter, she landed a recurring role on the medical drama ER, and debuted on Broadway in David Henry Hwang's Golden Child.

Ming-Na provided the speaking voice for the Disney animated heroine Mulan, and not long after lent her voice for the lead character of Aki in the CGI animated feature Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.