Michelle Yeoh
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| Michelle Yeoh | ||||||
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| Michelle Yeoh at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival | ||||||
| Chinese name | 楊紫瓊 (Traditional) | |||||
| Chinese name | 杨紫琼 (Simplified) | |||||
| Pinyin | Yáng Zǐqióng (Mandarin) | |||||
| Jyutping | Joeng4 Zi2king4 (Cantonese) | |||||
| Birth name | Yeoh Choo-Kheng | |||||
| Born | 6 August 1962 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia |
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| Occupation | Actress/Dancer | |||||
| Years active | 1984–present | |||||
| Spouse(s) | Dickson Poon (1988–1992) | |||||
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Michelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng (born 6 August 1962) is a Hong Kong actress and dancer, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s.
Born in Ipoh, Malaysia, she is based in Hong Kong and was chosen by People magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World in 1997.
She is best known in the Western world for her roles in the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies, playing Wai Lin, and the multiple Academy Award-winning Chinese action film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, for which she was nominated the BAFTA for "Best Actress". In 2008, the film critic website Rotten Tomatoes ranked her the greatest action heroine of all time.1
She is credited as Michelle Khan in some of her earlier films. This alias was chosen by the D&B studio who thought it might be more marketable to international and western audiences. Yeoh later preferred using her real name2
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Early life and career
Michelle Yeoh Choo Kheng was born to a prominent ethnic Chinese family in Ipoh, Malaysia on 6 August 1962. Her parents are Janet Yeoh and Yeoh Kian Teik, a lawyer and MCA politician.3 She has had a passion for dance from that of an early age. She started to study ballet at the age of four years old. At 15 years old she moved with her parents to England, where she was enrolled in a boarding school. Yeoh later studied at the Royal Academy of Dance in London, majoring in Ballet. However, a spinal injury shattered her lifelong dream of being a prima ballerina, and she consequently had to switch her focus away from dance to choreography and other arts. She later received a B.A. degree in Creative Arts with a minor in Drama.
In 1983, at the age of 21, Yeoh won the Miss Malaysia beauty pageant. She was also Malaysia's representative at the 1983 Miss World pageant in London. From there, she appeared in a television commercial with Jackie Chan which caught the attention of a fledgling Hong Kong film production company, D&B Films.
Yeoh's career in Hong Kong started with a few commercials for Charles Jourdan, opposite action movie heroes Jackie Chan and Chow Yun-fat before being offered a film contract. The Charles Jourdan brand was handled by D&B Group in Hong Kong, run by Yeoh's future husband, Dickson Poon. In 1988, she retired from acting after marrying Poon. Three years later, the couple divorced and Yeoh returned to acting in 1992. Her first movie after the comeback was Police Story 3: Super Cop, which was partly shot in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Ascension to fame
Yeoh started her film career acting in action and martial arts films such as Yes, Madam in 1985, The Heroic Trio in 1993, and the Yuen Woo-ping films Tai Chi Master and Wing Chun in 1994. Yeoh has had no formal martial arts training and she relies on her dance training and instructors, and does many of her own stunts.4
Yeoh learned English and Malay before Cantonese, and cannot read Chinese characters. As she does not read Chinese, she learned the lines for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon phonetically.
She starred in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies as Wai Lin (1997). Natasha Henstridge was rumored to be cast in the lead Bond girl role but eventually Yeoh was confirmed.5 Brosnan was impressed, describing her as a "wonderful actress" who was "serious and committed about her work".6 He referred to her as a "female James Bond" in reference to her combat abilities. She wanted to perform her own stunts but was prevented because director Roger Spottiswoode ruled it too dangerous and uninsured. However, she did perform all of her fighting scenes.78 Thereafter, she was offered the role of Seraph in the two sequels to The Matrix, but she could not accept due to a scheduling conflict (the Matrix writers then changed Seraph into a male character and cast Collin Chou in the role).9 In 2002, she produced her first English film, The Touch through her own production company, Mythical Films.
In 2005, Yeoh starred as the graceful Mameha in the film adaptation of Memoirs of a Geisha, and she continued her English-language work in 2007 with Sunshine. In 2008, Michelle Yeoh also starred in the fantasy action film The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor with actors Brendan Fraser and Jet Li.10
Personal life
Yeoh was previously married to Hong Kong businessman Dickson Poon, who owns businesses such as Harvey Nichols and Charles Jourdan.11
On 31 July 2008, Yeoh confirmed the rumor that she was engaged to Jean Todt, a leading figure in motor racing, during an interview with Craig Ferguson on CBS's The Late Late Show.
In March 2008, she visited Vietnam to film a documentary for the Asian Injury Prevention Foundation (AIPF).
Yeoh is also a supporter of the Save China's Tigers project which aims at saving the endangered South China Tiger through rewilding and release them into the wild. She has become an ambassador for this conservation project.12
Awards
On 19 April 2001, Yeoh was awarded the Darjah Datuk Paduka Mahkota Perak (DPMP), which carries the title Dato' by Sultan Azlan Shah, the Sultan of Perak, her home state, in recognition of the fame she brought to the state.13 The award was given in conjunction with the Sultan's 73rd birthday celebrations.
On 25 November 2002, Yeoh was honoured as The Outstanding Young Persons of the World (TOYP) (Cultural Achievement) by JCI (Junior Chamber International).
On 23 April 2007 President Jacques Chirac awarded her Knight of the Legion of Honour of France. The decoration was presented to her in a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur on 3 October 2007.14
Nominations
BAFTA Film Award 2001 – Best Actress (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | The Owl vs Bombo | Miss Yeung | a.k.a. Mao tou ying yu xiao fei xiang |
| 1985 | Yes, Madam | Inspector Ng | a.k.a. Huang jia shi jie |
| Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Stars | Judo instructor | a.k.a. Xia ri fu xing | |
| 1986 | In the Line of Duty | Michelle Yip | a.k.a. Wong ga jin si |
| 1987 | Dynamite Fighters | Fok Ming-Ming | a.k.a. Zhong hua zhan shi a.k.a. Magnificent Warriors |
| Easy Money | Michelle Yeung | a.k.a. Tong tian da dao | |
| 1992 | Police Story 3: Super Cop | Inspector Jessica Yang | a.k.a. Ging chat goo si 3: Chiu kup ging chat |
| 1993 | The Heroic Trio | Ching/Invisible Woman/Number 3 | a.k.a. Dung fong saam hap |
| Butterfly and Sword | Lady Ko | a.k.a. San lau sing woo dip gim | |
| Executioners | Ching/San/Carol | a.k.a. Xian dai hao xia zhuan | |
| Holy Weapon | Ching Sze/To Col Ching | a.k.a. Wu xia qi gong zhu | |
| Once a Cop | Jessica Yang | a.k.a. Project S or Chao ji ji hua | |
| Tai Chi Master | Siu Lin | a.k.a. Tai ji: Zhang San Feng | |
| 1994 | Shaolin Popey 2 - Messy Temple | Ah King | a.k.a. Shao Lin xiao zi II: Xin wu long yuan |
| Wonder Seven | Ying | a.k.a. 7 jin gong | |
| The Beautiful Secret Agent | Yim Wing Chun | a.k.a. Wing Chun | |
| 1996 | Ah Kam | Ah Kam | a.k.a A Jin de gu shi |
| 1997 | The Soong Sisters | Soong Ai-ling/Madam Kung | a.k.a. Song jia huang chao |
| Tomorrow Never Dies | Way Lin | a.k.a. TND | |
| 1999 | Moonlight Express | Sis | a.k.a. Sing yuet tung wa |
| 2000 | Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon | Yu Shu Lien | a.k.a. Wo hu cang long |
| 2002 | The Touch | Pak Yin Fay | |
| 2004 | Silver Hawk | Lulu Wong / The Silver Hawk | a.k.a. Fei Ying |
| 2005 | Memoirs of a Geisha | Mameha | |
| 2006 | Fearless | Ms. Yang | (directors cut only) |
| 2007 | Sunshine | Corazon | |
| Far North (2007 film) | Saiva | ||
| 2008 | The Children of Huang Shi | Mrs.Wang | a.k.a. Escape from Huang Shi |
| Babylon A.D. | Sister Rebeka | ||
| The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor | Zi Yuan | a.k.a. "The Mummy 3" - USA (informal title) | |
| 2010 | True Legend | Sister Yu | a.k.a Su Qi-Er |
| Reign of Assassins | Zeng Jing | chinese title Jianyu a.k.a. Jianyu Jianghu | |
| 2011 | Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom | The Soothsayer | (voice) |
See also
References
- ^ ROTTEN TOMATOES: Total Recall: The 25 Best Action Heroines of All Time
- ^ Her own person, Michelle Yeoh interview, 2004
- ^ Michelle Yeoh Biography (1963-)
- ^ http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/Sunpeople/Sunday/Features/20070408122900/Article/index2_html
- ^ Ferguson, Amy. "Back In Action". Tribute. http://www.tribute.ca/tribute/0901/cover_story.htm. Retrieved 5 January 2007.
- ^ Cohen, David (11 February 1997). "Bond girl Yeoh gets licence to thrill 007". South China Morning Post. http://www.klast.net/bond/tndnews1.html#yeoh. Retrieved 6 January 2007.
- ^ "Bond Leading Lady Won't Do Stunts". Associated Press. 21 May 1997. http://www.klast.net/bond/tndnews1.html#yeoh. Retrieved 6 January 2007.
- ^ "Much More Than Just A Bond Girl". South China Morning Post. 30 May 1997. http://www.klast.net/bond/tndnews2.html#starburst. Retrieved 7 January 2007.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Chung, Philip W. (1 August 2008). "Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh: From ‘Tai Chi Master’ to ‘The Mummy’". AsianWeek. Retrieved on 4 August 2008.
- ^ Swain, Jon (25 March 2007). "No business like Yeoh business". London: TIMESONLINE. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article1548715.ece. Retrieved 8 April 2007.
- ^ "Save China's Tigers: Patrons and Supporters". SaveChina'Tigers.org. 22 August 2008. http://english.savechinastigers.org/node/139/.
- ^ Just Call Me Datuk - Asiaweek, 4 May 2001
- ^ Yeoh receives France's top honour, BBC News, 4 October 2007.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Michelle Yeoh |
- Michelle Yeoh Web Theatre
- Michelle Yeoh at the Internet Movie Database
- Supercop as Woman Warrior at Salon magazine.
- Interview with Michelle Yeoh on the Tavis Smiley show
- Sunday Times feature
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