Lucy Liu
Template:Infobox Chinese-language singer and actor
Lucy Alexis Liu (born December 2, 1968) is an American actress. She became known for her role in the television series Ally McBeal (1998–2002) as the vicious and ill-mannered Ling Woo, and has also appeared in several notable film roles, including Charlie's Angels, Kill Bill and Kung Fu Panda.
Early life
Lucy Liu was born and was raised with her brother John in Jackson Heights, Queens, New York, by Taiwanese immigrant parents.[1][2] Liu has said that she grew up in a "diverse" neighborhood.[2] Her family spoke Mandarin at home and she did not learn English until she was five years old.[3] Her father, Tom, was a civil engineer and her mother, Cecilia, a biochemist,[4] but they sacrificed those careers in Taiwan to come to the United States. Liu, at her parents' insistence, devoted her spare time to studying. She attended the Joseph Pulitzer Middle School (I.S.145) and she graduated from New York City's prestigious Stuyvesant High School in 1986.[5] She attended New York University for one year, before transferring to the University of Michigan, where she joined the Chi Omega sorority and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Asian Languages and Cultures.[2] At one point, Liu worked as a waitress in Michigan.[2]
Career
Liu began acting in 1989, after auditioning for a role in the University of Michigan's production of Alice in Wonderland during her senior year. Liu was cast in the lead role, although she had originally only tried out for a supporting part.[2] Liu had small roles in films and TV (including The X-Files in "Hell Money" and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys in "The March to Freedom") before landing a role on Ally McBeal. Liu originally auditioned for the role of 'Nelle Porter' (played by Portia de Rossi), and the character 'Ling Woo' was later created specifically for her. Liu's part on the series was originally not meant to be regular but the enthusiastic audience response to the actress' 'feisty' Ling Woo secured Liu as a permanent cast member. It also earned her an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, as well as a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy Series.[2] Liu cemented her reputation playing bad girls by portraying "Pearl" the sadistic dominatrix/hitwoman for the Chinese mafia in the film Payback (1999).
Liu played Alex Munday in the Charlie's Angels film, alongside established Hollywood stars Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz. The film opened in November 2000 and was a hit, earning more than $125 million in the U.S., and a worldwide total of more than $264 million. The sequel, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, opened in June 2003 and was a box-office hit again, earning more than $100 million in the U.S., and a worldwide total of more than $259 million. In between the two films, Liu starred with Antonio Banderas in Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever, a critical and box office failure.
Liu next played O-Ren Ishii, one of the major villains in Quentin Tarantino's 2003 film, Kill Bill. She won an MTV Movie Award for "Best Movie Villain" for the part. Subsequently, Liu appeared on several episodes of Joey with Matt LeBlanc, who played her love interest in the Charlie's Angels movies. She also had smaller roles as Kitty Baxter in the film Chicago, and as a psychologist opposite Keira Knightley in the thriller Domino. In 2006, she played leading lady and love interest to Josh Hartnett in the crime thriller Lucky Number Slevin. Other appearances include a cameo on the animated shows Futurama (as herself and/or robot duplicates thereof in the episodes "I Dated a Robot" and "Love and Rocket" and The Simpsons (on the season sixteen episode "Goo Goo Gai Pan"), a guest host on an episode of the NBC sketch show Saturday Night Live in 2000 (musical guest: Jay-Z), and the voice of [[SSX TAe kayo Her film 3 Needles was released on December 1, 2006. In the film, she plays Jin Ping, an HIV-positive Chinese woman. Liu agreed to star in the film for lower than usual pay because she wanted to spread awareness about the way AIDS is improperly treated in China and Thailand.[6] Liu's other recent roles, which met with less success, but later gain cult followings among her fans, include Code Name: The Cleaner, an action comedy released January 5, 2007; Rise, a supernatural thriller co-starring Michael Chiklis in which Liu plays an undead reporter[3] (for which she was ranked number forty-one on "Top 50 Sexiest Vampires");[7] and Watching the Detectives, an independent romantic comedy co-starring Cillian Murphy. Liu has also signed on to star in a new version of Charlie Chan which has been in pre-production since 2000; she will produce both films.[2]
Liu has guest starred as lawyer Grace Chin on Ugly Betty in the episodes "Derailed" and "Icing on the Cake". In a 2001 episode of Sex and the City entitled "Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda" she guest starred as herself, playing a new client of character Samantha Jones, who does public relations. She starred in the Sex and the City inspired TV show, Cashmere Mafia on ABC. In 2007, Empire magazine named her among the "100 Sexiest Movie Stars".[8]
In 2008, after pitching an interest in being part of the hit new show Dirty Sexy Money, the producers immediately created a role for her as a series regular. She played the role of Nola Lyons, a powerful attorney that faced Nick George (played by Peter Krause).[9] She is the voice for Silvermist in Disney Fairies franchise. She also appeared in Kung Fu Panda, an animated film in which she voiced Viper.[2]
March 2, 2010, Liu made her Broadway debut in the Tony Award-winning play God of Carnage playing Annette as part of the second replacement cast along side Jeff Daniels, Janet McTeer and Dylan Baker.
Personal life
In a Jane interview, she is quoted as saying,
"I think people sometimes get the wrong impression when they're like, 'Oh, well, so-and-so was straight and then she was gay, and now she's straight again,' you know? But it's like, how many times do I have to kiss a woman before I'm gay? Everybody wants to label people. Sometimes you just fall in love with somebody, and you're really not thinking about what gender or whatever they happen to be. I think that if I happen to fall in love with a woman, everyone's going to make a big deal out of it. But if I happen to fall in love with a man, nobody cares."[10][11]
With her parents' work ethic, Liu continued, "I'm always multi-tasking, doing 10 things at once". She speaks Mandarin Chinese and English natively, and "a little bit of Spanish, a tiny bit of Italian, a little bit of Japanese,"[8] for her role in Kill Bill.[2] She also rock climbs, practices martial arts, skis, and plays the accordion.
Liu is also an artist in several media, and has had three gallery shows showcasing her collage, paintings, and photography.[12] She started doing collage mixed media at 16 and then moved to photography and later painting.[13] Lucy Liu had an art show in September and she donated her share of the profits to UNICEF.[13][14] She also has another show in 2008 in Munich and has stated that she will also donate her share of the profits to UNICEF.[13]
In 2001, Liu was the spokesperson for the Lee National Denim Day fundraiser which raises millions of dollars for breast cancer research and education. In 2005, Liu was appointed a U.S. Fund for UNICEF Ambassador; in that capacity, she has traveled to Pakistan and Lesotho, among other countries.[2] She also hosted an MTV documentary for the MTV EXIT campaign in 2007, produced to raise awareness of human trafficking in Asia. Early in 2006, Liu received an "Asian Excellence Award" for Visibility, since she is considered the most well-known and visible Asian American in the media today. She is also the first Asian American woman to host Saturday Night Live. In March, 2010, she appeared as the spokesperson for the Heinz Micronutrient Campaign, a non-profit program of the H. J. Heinz Company Foundation that provides vitamin and mineral powders to combat iron deficiency anemia in the developing world.
Liu has said about her background, "when you grow up Asian-American it’s difficult because you don’t know if you’re Asian or you’re American. You get confused... You need to recognize where your background is from. I think it’s important. Just for yourself. It makes you more whole. It does."[2]
She lives with her brother and his wife in New York.[13]
Filmography
Television
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-97 | Pearl | Amy Li | 7 episodes |
| 1998–2002 | Ally McBeal | Ling Woo | Seasons 2 to 5 (72 episodes) Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Nominated - Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Comedy Series Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Nominated - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series |
| 2004 | Game Over | Raquel Smashenburn | (voice) |
| 2004-present | Maya and Miguel | Maggie Lee | 9 episodes (voice) |
| 2008 | Cashmere Mafia | Mia Mason | 7 episodes |
| 2008–2009 | Dirty Sexy Money | Nola Lyons | 13 episodes; Season 2 |
| 2009 | Afro Samurai Resurrection | Sio | (voice) |
TV guest appearances
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Beverly Hills, 90210 | Courtney | 1 episode |
| 1993 | L.A. Law | Mai Lin | 1 episode |
| 1994 | Coach | Nicole Wong | 2 episodes |
| Hotel Malibu | Co-Worker | 1 episode | |
| 1995 | Home Improvement | Women #3 | 1 episode |
| Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | Oi-Lan | 1 episode | |
| ER | Mei-Sun Leow | 3 episodes | |
| 1996 | Nash Bridges | Joy Powell | 1 episode |
| The X Files | Kim Hsin | 1 episode | |
| High Incident | Officer Whin | 2 episodes | |
| 1997 | The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest | Melana (voice) | 1 episode |
| Michael Hayes | Alice Woo | 1 episode | |
| Dellaventura | Yuling Chong | 1 episode | |
| NYPD Blue | Amy Chu | 1 episode | |
| 2000 | MADtv | Herself | 1 episode |
| Saturday Night Live | Herself - Host | 1 episode | |
| 2001 | Sex and the City | Herself | 1 episode |
| 2001-2002 | Futurama | Herself | 2 episodes |
| 2002 | King of the Hill | Tid Pao | 1 episode |
| 2004 | Jackie Chan Adventures | Adult Jade (voice) | 1 episode |
| 2004-05 | Joey | Lauren Beck | 3 episodes |
| 2005 | The Simpsons | Madam Wu (voice) | 1 episode |
| 2007 | Ugly Betty | Grace Chin | 3 episodes |
Producer
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Freedom's Fury | Co-executive producer | Documentary |
| 2007 | Code Name: The Cleaner | Co-executive producer |
References
- ^ "Lucy Liu - an agent of change". Independent.co.uk. 2008-06-27. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Roberts, Sheila (2006-12-21). "Lucy Liu Interview, CodeName The Cleaner". Movies Online. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b Radish, Christina (2006-12-06). "Lucy Liu and Shawn Ashmore Talk about "3 Needles"". MediaBlvd Magazine. Retrieved 2006-12-21.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "Lucy Liu Biography (1968-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
- ^ Ogunnaike, Lola (2003-10-13). "The Perks and Pitfalls Of a Ruthless-Killer Role; Lucy Liu Boosts the Body Count in New Film". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ "Liu Shocked by Ridiculous Chinese AIDS 'Cures'". Contact Music. 2006-11-29. Retrieved 2006-11-29.
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- ^ a b "EimpireOnline.com EmpireOnline.com, 100 Sexiest Movie Stars". Empireonline.com. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
- ^ "Lucy Liu Talks Dirty". AsianWeek. Retrieved on 2008-09-08.
- ^ ""How many times do I have to kiss a woman before I'm gay?"". Jane Magazine. 2003. Retrieved 2006-11-29.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ Belge, Kathy. "Lucy Liu". Lesbian Life at About.com. Retrieved 2006-11-29.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Tucker, Reed (2006-05-01). ""Painting By Numbers With Lucy Liu"". Esquire. Retrieved 2006-12-06.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ a b c d Live with Regis and Kelly. First aired on January 21, 2008.
- ^ "Auction of Lucy Liu's Artwork Raises More Than $330,000, October 17, 2006". Mcmurry.com. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
External links
- 1968 births
- Living people
- Actors from New York City
- American film actors
- American television actors
- American voice actors
- American actors of Asian descent
- American people of Chinese descent
- MTV Movie Award winners
- New York University alumni
- People from Jackson Heights, Queens
- Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award winners
- Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Screen Actors Guild Award winners
- Stuyvesant High School alumni
- University of Michigan alumni
- American people of Taiwanese descent
- American martial artists