Jess Hong is a New Zealand actress of Chinese descent, known for her role as Maddy in The Brokenwood Mysteries (2021) and as Jin Cheng in the Netflix series 3 Body Problem (2024).

Jess Hong was raised in Palmerston North in New Zealand, by her mother, an immigrant from Guangzhou, China. Her father is from Shanghai. She is the youngest of three sisters.^[1]

She started taking drama classes at the age of 13, mainly to combat her shyness and social anxiety. After completing her secondary education, she moved to Wellington to study for three years at the national drama school, Toi Whakaari, graduating in 2019.^[1][2]

Hong moved to Auckland after graduation, undertaking casual work while auditioning for acting jobs.^[1] She has appeared in a variety of stage productions throughout New Zealand, including several Shakespeare performances. On screen she has appeared in the New Zealand shows The Brokenwood Mysteries, Inked, Creamerie, and My Life is Murder.^[2]

Her biggest career break came with the offer of a leading role in the Netflix series 3 Body Problem, released in 2024.^[1] According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hong's character Jin Cheng, who is originally of Chinese descent, was rewritten to reflect her New Zealand background and accent. To prepare for her role, Hong read Cixin Liu's Remembrance of Earth's Past and listened to scientific podcasts and TED Talks on various topics including the multiverse and String theory.^[3]