Ming-Na_Wen

Ming-Na Wen

Ming-Na Wen

American actress (born 1963)

The native form of this personal name is Wēn Míngnà. This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.
In this Chinese name, the family name is Wen.

Ming-Na Wen (Chinese: 溫明娜; born November 20, 1963)[1] is an American[2] actress. She is best known for playing Melinda May / The Cavalry in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013–2020). Wen made her breakthrough in The Joy Luck Club (1993) as June Woo. She also voiced the eponymous character in the animated film Mulan, its sequel, and reprised the role as Mulan in the video game. Additionally, Wen made a cameo appearance in the live-action remake of Mulan (2020).

Quick Facts Born, Other names ...

She is also known for playing Fennec Shand in The Mandalorian (2019–2020), Star Wars: The Bad Batch (2021), and The Book of Boba Fett (2021–2022) and for playing Dr. Jing-Mei "Deb" Chen in the medical drama series ER (1995–2004). Her other works include Kingdom Hearts II (2005), Sofia the First (2014), and Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018); the roles of Chun-Li in Street Fighter (1994), Detective Ellen Yin in The Batman (2004–2005); and Camile Wray in Stargate Universe (2009–2011). She was honored as a Disney Legend in 2019.

Early life and education

Ming-Na Wen's 1981 Mt. Lebanon High School yearbook photo

Wen was born on November 20, 1963, in Coloane, one of the two main islands of Macau.[1] Her mother Lin Chan Wen moved to Macau in the 1950s, from Suzhou, China, to escape communism.[3] Her father is of Malaysian Chinese descent.[4] She has an older brother named Jonathan.[5]

Wen's parents divorced when she was an infant, and she moved with her brother and mother to Hong Kong. Wen attended a Catholic school in Hong Kong, while her mother worked in three jobs to provide for her and her brother. Her mother remarried to Chinese American Soo Lim Yee, and when Wen was four years old, the family moved to New York City.[6] Her younger brother Leong was born there. After five years, Wen's mother and stepfather relocated again, this time to the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, area, where they opened The Chinatown Inn restaurant, (Chinatown Inn first opened its doors in 1943) which is still operating.[1] Raised in the suburb of Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, she attended Mount Lebanon High School[7] and graduated from Carnegie Mellon University in 1986 having majored in theatre.[8]

Career

1985–1997: Breakthrough with The Joy Luck Club

Wen's first television role was as a royal trumpeter in the children's television series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood in 1985.[9] From 1988 to 1991, she played Lien Hughes, the daughter of Tom Hughes, on the soap opera As the World Turns.[citation needed]

After starring in the acclaimed film The Joy Luck Club (1993),[10] Wen landed the role of Dr. Jing-Mei "Deb" Chen on the NBC drama series ER.[1] She first starred in a recurring role during the 1994–1995 season before returning in 1999 as a series regular, remaining on the show until midway through Season 11 in 2004. Wen also played Chun-Li in Street Fighter (1994)[10] and co-starred on the sitcom The Single Guy from 1995 to 1997.[1]

1998–2012: Mulan, established actress and other ventures

Wen in October 2006

Wen provided the voice for the title character in the 1998 animated film Mulan, its direct-to-video sequel, Mulan II, and the video game Kingdom Hearts II, subsequently winning an Annie Award. She voiced Aki Ross in the computer-animated film Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within,[11] and Detective Ellen Yin in the animated series The Batman.[11] She was also the voice actress for Jade, a minor character in the HBO animated series Spawn.[10]

In 2004, Wen took part in a Hollywood Home Game on the World Poker Tour, and won.[12] In fall 2005, she starred on the NBC drama series Inconceivable as the lead character, Rachel Lu. However, the series was canceled after only two episodes. Her next TV role was an FBI agent in the Fox kidnap drama series Vanished, which premiered in the fall of 2006 but was canceled. She also played a college professor in the comedy series George Lopez.

On October 8 through October 29, 2007, Wen (billed as Ming Wen) appeared in a four-episode arc of CBS's Two and a Half Men, playing Charlie Sheen's love interest, a judge closer to his own age.[13] In November 2008, she guest-starred on two ABC series: Private Practice and Boston Legal. From December 5–6, 2008, Wen starred in a benefit production of the musical Grease with "Stuttering" John Melendez at the Class Act Theatre.[14]

Wen was cast as a regular in the Stargate Universe television series as political attaché Camile Wray from October 2009 to May 2011.[1] Wen made an appearance in Disney Through the Decades, a short documentary about the history of The Walt Disney Company through to the present, as the hostess of the 1990s section.

Wen appeared on the Syfy series Eureka as the inquisitive U.S. Senator Michaela Wen,[15] beginning in season four in 2011 and serving as a major villain in the fifth and final season in 2012.[16]

2013–present: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Star Wars and other works

Wen at San Diego Comic Con in 2019

Wen starred as Agent Melinda May in the ABC superhero drama series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which premiered on September 24, 2013.[17]

In August 2014, Wen reprised her role as Mulan for the first time since Kingdom Hearts II in the Disney Channel series Sofia the First.[11] Wen's daughter has a recurring role on the show as Princess Jun.[18]

On December 7, 2017, Marvel Entertainment launched a new animation film franchise Marvel Rising: Secret Warriors. Wen voiced Hala the Accuser, the main antagonist of the film, working with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. co-star Chloe Bennet.[19] That same year, she once again provided the voice of Mulan in Ralph Breaks the Internet.[11][20]

In 2019, it was announced that Wen would be a cast-member of the Star Wars TV series The Mandalorian, playing Fennec Shand.[21] She reprised the role vocally in Star Wars: The Bad Batch,[22][23] and the live-action series The Book of Boba Fett.[21]

In 2022, Wen made an appearance on Young Sheldon as Dr. Lee, an experimental physicist responsible for mitigating conflict within a team of scientists.[24] She is set to recur on the second season of HBO Max's Hacks.[25]

Artistry and legacy

Wen honored as a Disney Legend at the Disney D23 Expo 2019

Wen's roles as Melinda May and Fennec Shand in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and The Book of Boba Fett respectively, have received critical acclaim.[26] In December 2021, she was included in the list of BBC's 100 Women of 2021.[27] Wen received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2023.[28][29][30]

She is also well known for her work with Disney.[31] WDW Magazine writer Aaron Widmar called Wen an "incredibly talented Chinese actress, who has had a remarkable career that seems to only gain steam as it progresses—a rarity in Hollywood".[31] He went on to say that she has "broken through barriers for Asian performers".[31] In a 2014 article by a Chinese evening magazine based in Kunming, China, the Spring City Evening News wrote that "among the second-generation Chinese children who immigrated to the United States with their parents, Wen adhered to the excellent Chinese culture and etiquette."[32] She was named a Disney Legend at the 2019 D23 Expo for her outstanding contributions to the Disney company.[33][34]

Personal life

In 1990, Wen married American film writer Kirk Aanes. They divorced three years later. On June 16, 1995, Wen married Eric Michael Zee[1] and together they have a daughter and a son.[35] Wen's first pregnancy was written into the ER script, with her character placing the child for adoption. Wen's daughter followed her mother's footsteps in voice acting, and voices Princess Jun in the Disney Channel-animated series Sofia the First, credited as Michaela Zee.[18]

Wen is trilingual, fluent in English, Cantonese and Mandarin.[6] She is a Buddhist.[36]

Filmography

Wen at the January 2009 premiere for Push

Film

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Television

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Web series

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Video games

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Awards and nominations

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Notes

  1. Shared with the cast & executive producer

References

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