Michelle Yeoh Biography
Named Miss Malaysia in 1983, Michelle Yeoh went on to become one of the world’s top film stars.
In 2023 she became the first Asian to win an Oscar in the category of Best Actress. Yeoh earned the award for her stunning performance in the film Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022, by The Daniels).
First known for action films — and for performing many of her own stunts — Yeoh became a Hong Kong favorite after landing the lead role in the martial arts film Yes, Madam (1985).
She conquered American audiences with her scene-stealing roles in Jackie Chan‘s Supercop (1992) and the 1997 James Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies (starring Pierce Brosnan).
As she matured into middle age and more subtly dramatic roles, she was an even bigger hit alongside Chow Yun-Fat in the 2000 hit Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (directed by Ang Lee). Yeoh has since been recognized as an international movie star, sometimes in character roles, sometimes in leading roles.
Yeoh’s films include The Touch (2002); Memoirs of a Geisha (2005); Sunshine (2007); ‘The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008); True Legend (2010); Crazy Rich Asians (2018); and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021).
Extra credit
Michelle Yeoh was made a member of the French Legion of Honor in 2007… She has sometimes been credited as Michelle Khan… Yeoh played Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in the 2011 biopic The Lady, and was subsequently barred from entering Myanmar (Burma).