Ming-Na Wen

Ming-Na Wen was born on November 20, 1963, on Coloane Island, Macau. After her parents divorced, she moved to Hong Kong with her mother and older brother. Her mother later remarried a Chinese American businessman, and the family relocated to Queens, New York, when Wen was four. Five years later, they moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where her stepfather’s family operated the Chinatown Inn restaurant. Wen attended Mount Lebanon High School and later graduated from Carnegie Mellon University in 1986 with a degree in theatre. Her professional acting career began in 1985 with a role as a royal trumpeter in “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.”

Wen gained initial recognition from 1988 to 1991 for her role as Lien Hughes on the soap opera “As the World Turns,” becoming the first Asian actress to hold a contract role on a daytime soap. Her breakthrough came with the critically acclaimed film “The Joy Luck Club” in 1993. This led to significant opportunities, including a recurring role as Dr. Jing-Mei “Deb” Chen in NBC’s medical drama “ER” from 1994 to 1995, returning as a series regular from 1999 to 2004. Other notable early film appearances include playing Chun-Li in “Street Fighter” (1994) and co-starring in the sitcom “The Single Guy” (1995-1997).

Her career further diversified with prominent voice acting roles, most notably as the title character in Disney’s animated film “Mulan” (1998) and its sequel “Mulan II.” She voiced Aki Ross in “Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within” (2001) and Detective Ellen Yin in “The Batman” animated series (2004-2005). In her later career, Wen became well-known for her roles in major franchises, including Agent Melinda May in Marvel’s “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” (2013-2020) and Fennec Shand in the Star Wars universe, appearing in “The Mandalorian” (2019-2020), “Star Wars: The Bad Batch” (2021, 2024), and “The Book of Boba Fett” (2021-2022). She was honored as a Disney Legend in 2019 and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2023, acknowledging her extensive contributions to film and television.