Ming-Na Wen

Actress

Birthday November 20, 1963

Birth Sign Scorpio

Birthplace Coloane, Portuguese Macau

Age 60 years old

Nationality Portuguese

Height 5′ 4″

#3816 Most Popular

1943

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.

1950

Her mother Lin Chan Wen moved to Macau in the 1950s, from Suzhou, China, to escape communism.

Her father is of Malaysian Chinese descent.

She has an older brother named Jonathan.

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.

Her younger brother Leong was born there.

1963

Ming-Na Wen (born November 20, 1963) is an American actress.

Wen was born on November 20, 1963, in Coloane, one of the two main islands of Macau.

1985

Wen's first television role was as a royal trumpeter in the children's television series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood in 1985.

1986

Raised in the suburb of Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania, she attended Mount Lebanon High School and graduated from Carnegie Mellon University in 1986 having majored in theatre.

1988

From 1988 to 1991, she played Lien Hughes, the daughter of Tom Hughes, on the soap opera As the World Turns.

1990

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.

1993

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.

After starring in the acclaimed film The Joy Luck Club (1993), Wen landed the role of Dr. Jing-Mei "Deb" Chen on the NBC drama series ER.

1994

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) and co-starred on the sitcom The Single Guy from 1995 to 1997.

1998

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, and Detective Ellen Yin in the animated series The Batman.

She was also the voice actress for Jade, a minor character in the HBO animated series Spawn.

2004

In 2004, Wen took part in a Hollywood Home Game on the World Poker Tour, and won.

2005

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).

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.

2006

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.

2007

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.

2008

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.

2009

Wen was cast as a regular in the Stargate Universe television series as political attaché Camile Wray from October 2009 to May 2011.

2011

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

2013

She is best known for playing Melinda May / The Cavalry in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013–2020).

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.

2014

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.

Wen's daughter has a recurring role on the show as Princess Jun.

2019

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).

She was honored as a Disney Legend in 2019.

2020

Additionally, Wen made a cameo appearance in the live-action remake of Mulan (2020).