Meng'er Zhang (Chinese: 张梦儿; pinyin: Zhāng Mèng'er; born April 22, 1987)[1] is a Chinese actress best known for portraying Xu Xialing in the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Meng'er Zhang | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 张梦儿 | |||||||||
.png) Zhang in 2021 | |||||||||
| Born | Zhang Meng'er April 22, 1987 | ||||||||
| Education | |||||||||
| Occupation | Actress | ||||||||
| Spouse |
Yung Lee (m. 2021) | ||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 张梦儿 | ||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 張夢兒 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Early life and education
editZhang is the daughter of an actor and a stage designer. She grew up heavily-devoted to theater arts in order to follow in her mother's footsteps. Prior to becoming a professional actress, she starred in stage and musical productions in Nanjing, where she was born and raised, and Shanghai. In 2009, she graduated from Nanjing University of the Arts with a bachelor's degree.[2] She attended the East 15 Acting School in Essex and the Russian Institute of Theater Arts in Moscow.[3]
Career
editEarly career
editIn 2009, Zhang participated in China's Super Girl TV singing contest and was amongst the top 20 participants nationwide before withdrawing as her parents had arranged further schooling overseas for her.[4][5] She later starred in numerous theatre productions.[6] In 2013, in a Chinese stage adaptation, titled Finding Destiny (寻找初恋), of the Korean musical, Finding Mr. Destiny, Zhang played the female lead Luo Yan.[7][8] In 2017, she starred in the Chinese musical adaptation of The Street of Dawn (黎明之街) where she played Nakanishi Akiba (仲系 秋叶),[9] and in Oliver Twist where she played Dodger.[6][10] In 2019, she was in In the Mood for Sorrow (马不停蹄的忧伤) where she was nominated for the Best leading Actress Award at 13th Daegu International Musical Festival.[11][12]
Hollywood
editShang-Chi and the Legend of the ten Rings was her debut mainstream film role. Before being cast, she sent an audition-tape for an unknown role in an unknown film for women who could speak both Mandarin Chinese and English. After being cast for Shang-Chi, she received intense martial arts stunt training.[13] During production of Shang-Chi, she took advice from co-star Ben Kingsley on the distinction between stage- and camera-acting,[14] and director Destin Daniel Cretton also coached her in on-screen acting as she had little experience working with camera framing.[6] Her casting in the film was revealed at the Disney Investor Day 2020 in December of that year.[15] Zhang joined the cast of The Witcher for its third season as a human hunter named Milva.[16]
Personal life
editOn May 10, 2021, Zhang married Yung Lee, an action designer on Shang-Chi, whom she met on the set of the film. The Shang-Chi cast and crew, including her costars Simu Liu and Awkwafina, hosted a surprise wedding reception for them at Disneyland.[17][18][19]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings | Xu Xialing | [15] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | The Witcher | Milva | Season 3; Recurring | [20] |
| Year | Title | Roles | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Finding Destiny 《寻找初恋》 | Luo Yan 骆颜 | [7] | |
| 2014 | The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane | [21] | ||
| 2016 | The Moon and Sixpence | [22] | ||
| 2017 | The Street of Dawn 《黎明之街》 | Nakanishi Akiba 仲系 秋叶 | [9] | |
| 2017 | Oliver Twist | Dodger | [6][10] | |
| 2019 | In The Mood For Sorrow 《马不停蹄的忧伤》 | Lin Baosheng 林宝笙 | Nominated for Best Leading Actress Award at 13th Daegu International Musical Festival | [11][12] |
References
edit- ^ "漫威电影宇宙首部华人超英电影《尚气与十环传奇》曝角色海报和采访特辑。". 6 August 2021.
- ^ "音乐剧《寻找初恋》主创介绍_娱乐频道_凤凰网". ent.ifeng.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ "Marvel's Latest Heroine Meng'er Zhang Shares A Few Of Her Favourite Things With Vogue". British Vogue. 2021-09-03. Retrieved 2021-09-04.
- ^ "漫威《尚气》中女主曾参加过"快乐女声"". www.bcbay.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ 张磊 (3 December 2011). "张梦儿唐宁退出20强 快女遗珠极有可能被复活_娄底新闻网". news.ldnews.cn. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
- ^ a b c d "Meng'er Zhang on pursuing a dream and becoming a part of the MCU in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings". The Laterals. 2021-08-24. Retrieved 2021-09-04.
- ^ a b "音乐剧《寻找初恋》_娱乐频道_凤凰网". ent.ifeng.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ "《寻找初恋》：不只第一次恋爱才算初恋- 中国日报网". covid-19.chinadaily.com.cn. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ a b "张梦儿 东野圭吾作品《黎明之街》中国唯一授权舞台剧，本月底开演". m.longyanws.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ a b "4月1日音乐话剧《雾都孤儿》观剧团名单". www.pinlue.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ a b "原创音乐剧《马不停蹄的忧伤》斩获国际音乐剧节一项「评委会大奖」及五项提名_作品". www.sohu.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ a b "온라인상영작 | DIMF | 홈페이지". dimf.or.kr. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ Grebey, James (2021-09-03). "'Shang-Chi' star Meng'er Zhang's favorite part of filming? 'Punching Simu in the face'". SYFY WIRE. Retrieved 2021-09-04.
- ^ "'Asked & Answered with the Women of Marvel': Michelle Yeoh, Awkwafina, and Meng'er Zhang". Marvel Entertainment. Retrieved 2021-09-04.
- ^ a b McHenry, Jackson (2020-12-11). "All the Disney Investor Day Announcements in One Big Post". Vulture. Retrieved 2021-09-04.
- ^ Moreau, Jordan (April 14, 2022). "The Witcher Season 3 Casts Robbie Amell, Shang-Chi Star Meng'er Zhang and More". Variety. Penske Media Corporation.
- ^ "Meng'er Zhang Interview: Shang-Chi". ScreenRant. 2021-09-04. Retrieved 2021-09-04.
- ^ "Shang-Chi Star Meng'er Zhang Shares Details Of On-Set Marriage". Game Rant. 2021-09-02. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
- ^ "Shang-Chi' Star Meng'er Zhang Shares How Simu Liu and Awkwafina Threw Her a Surprise Wedding Reception | Entertainment Tonight". www.etonline.com. Retrieved 2021-09-06.
- ^ Petski, Denise (14 April 2022). "'The Witcher': Robbie Amell, Meng'er Zhang Among 4 Cast In Netflix Fantasy Drama". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
- ^ "成年人也需要童话 《爱德华的奇妙之旅》上演_大申网_腾讯网". sh.qq.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
- ^ "在控制欲望之前，先看清欲望" (in Chinese (Macau)). Retrieved 2021-09-05.