Constance Wu | |||||||||||||||
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 Wu in 2025 | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1982-03-22)March 22, 1982 (age 43)[1] Richmond, Virginia, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Education | State University of New York, Purchase (BFA) | ||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Actress | ||||||||||||||
| Years active | 2006–present | ||||||||||||||
| Partner | Ryan Kattner | ||||||||||||||
| Children | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 吳恬敏 | ||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 吴恬敏 | ||||||||||||||
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Constance Wu (Chinese:吳恬敏; born March 22, 1982) is an American actress. Wu'sbreakthrough role came with theABC sitcomFresh Off the Boat (2015–2020), which earned her four nominations at theCritics' Choice Television Awards.[2] For leading the romantic comedy-drama filmCrazy Rich Asians (2018), she became the fourth Asian woman to be nominated for theGolden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.[3]
Wu has appeared in the crime filmHustlers (2019), the musical filmLyle, Lyle, Crocodile (2022), and the drama filmThe Friend (2024). Her television roles include theweb seriesEastSiders (2012–2017) and theAmazon Prime action thriller seriesThe Terminal List (2022). She also voicedDaphne Blake in theMax animated seriesVelma (2023–2024). On stage, Wu acted in theLos Angeles production of2:22 A Ghost Story (2022) andoff Broadway productions of therock musicalLittle Shop of Horrors (2023) and the comedy-drama playShit. Meet. Fan. (2024).
She was included onTime magazine's list ofthe 100 most influential people in the world in 2017.[4] Her 2022 memoir,Making a Scene, detailed her experiences withsexual harassment,cyberbullying andpsychotherapy.
Constance Wu was born inRichmond, Virginia, to aTaiwanese American family.[5] She is the third of four daughters.[6] Her parents had emigrated fromTaiwan.[7][8][9] Her father, Fang-Sheng Wu, is a biology andgenetics professor atVirginia Commonwealth University, and her mother is acomputer programmer.[10][11][6] Wu said that her paternal grandparents were very poor, working asbamboo farmers, and did not have the opportunity to get an education, so they were unable to read and write.[12]
She graduated fromDouglas S. Freeman High School, inHenrico County, Virginia, where she performed in local theater. She participated in a six-month program during high school at theLee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute.[11] Wu later graduated fromState University of New York at Purchase's Conservatory of Theatre Arts with aBachelor of Fine Arts in acting in 2005.[13][14]
After college, Wu studiedpsycholinguistics in New York for three semesters of post-bachelor studies. She then applied to and was accepted byColumbia University to pursue graduate studies inspeech pathology. But before she entered Columbia, Wu decided to leave New York to continue acting and moved toLos Angeles.[15][16] She has cited Academy Award-winning directorAng Lee as an influence.[17]
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InNew York City, Wu got roles onstage and in independent movies. She made her screen debut with a supporting role inStephanie Daley (2006). She later had supporting roles inYear of the Fish andThe Architect. On television, she appeared in episodes ofLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit,Torchwood, andCovert Affairs, and had a recurring role as Laudine Lee on the ABC soap operaOne Life to Live in 2007. In an interview, Wu stated that she impulsively moved to Los Angeles from New York in 2010 after a heartbreak. In Los Angeles, she was cast inSound of My Voice, directed byZal Batmanglij.[18] From 2012 to 2017, Wu starred in theweb seriesEastSiders. She won twoIndie Series Awards, both for Best Ensemble - Drama in 2014 and 2016.[citation needed] She was also nominated for two Indie Series Awards, one for Best Supporting Actress - Drama and the other for Best Guest Actress - Drama in those same years.[19][20]
In 2015, Wu participated inSundance Screenwriters' Lab with two emerging Asian-American directors,Yung Chang andChristopher Yogi, in what she felt was a unique opportunity to support fellow Asian storytellers.[12] In 2014, after landing a role in one unsuccessful comedy pilot, Wu won the lead role in the ABC comedy seriesFresh Off the Boat alongsideRandall Park.[21][22] The series is loosely based on the life of chef and food personalityEddie Huang and his bookFresh Off the Boat: A Memoir. The series premiered in 2015, and Wu received critical acclaim for her performance.[23][24][25][26]E! named her a breakout star of the 2014–15 television season.[27] For her role as Jessica Huang, she received four nominations for theCritics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, tying withAmy Poehler as the second most nominated actress in the category behindJulia Louis-Dreyfus.[28] She was also nominated for twoTCA Awards for Individual Achievement in Comedy.[29]
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In 2017, she appeared in the Hulu anthology series,Dimension 404,[30] and was included on the annualTime 100 list of the most influential people in the world.[4] In February 2017,[31] Wu was cast as the female lead in Jon M. Chu's adaptation ofCrazy Rich Asians, based on the bestsellingnovel of the same name byKevin Kwan.[32] The film was released in the United States and Canada on August 15, 2018, byWarner Bros., and was the first major Hollywood studio film to feature an all-Asian cast since 1993'sThe Joy Luck Club.[33] The film was a critical and commercial success, and emerged as the highest-grossing romantic comedy in a decade, grossing over $238 million.[34] Wu received critical acclaim for her performance and was nominated for aGolden Globe Award, aScreen Actors Guild Award, aSatellite Award, twoCritics' Choice Movie Awards, and twoNAACP Image Awards.[citation needed] She is the first Asian woman in over 40 years to be nominated for theGolden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, and the fourth-ever female Asian nominee.[35] Wu is signed on to reprise her role as Rachel Chu in both sequels toCrazy Rich Asians titledChina Rich Girlfriend andRich People Problems, which were originally set forback-to-back filming in 2020,[36] although production on them has not yet begun.
In November 2018, Wu starred in a short animated filmCrow: The Legend as Skunk.[37] The following year, the actress starred alongsideJennifer Lopez in the crime comedy filmHustlers, which follows a group of formerstrippers inManhattan who rob wealthy men.[38][39] Wu worked at a strip club undercover to prepare for the role.[40] The film opened on September 13, 2019, and became a box office success, grossing over $157 million worldwide and receiving positive reviews from critics.[41][42] Also in 2019, Wu starred in the independent drama filmI Was a Simple Man.[43] In June 2019, it was announced that Wu would play the lead role in a film titledGoodbye Vitamin, based on the debut novel ofRachel Khong. The film will be distributed byUniversal Pictures and Wu will serve as anexecutive producer on the film.[44]
In March 2021, Wu was cast in theAmazon Prime thriller seriesThe Terminal List.[45] More recently, she signed a first look TV deal withEntertainment One.[46] She plays Mrs. Primm in the new movieLyle, Lyle, Crocodile, which was released in theaters October 7, 2022. In late 2022, she starred in the U.S. debut of the play2:22 A Ghost Story at theAhmanson Theatre inLos Angeles.[47] In 2023, she had a recurring voice role asDaphne Blake in theMax animated seriesVelma created byMindy Kaling.[48] That same year she acted in the horror comedyrock musicalLittle Shop of Horrors oppositeCorbin Bleuoff Broadway .[49] In 2024 she acted in the drama filmThe Friend alongsideNaomi Watts andBill Murray.[50] On August 26, 2024, it was announced that Wu has joined the cast ofShit. Meet. Fan. alongsideNeil Patrick Harris,Jane Krakowski, andDebra Messing in anoff Broadway play written and directed byRobert O'Hara.[51][52]
In October 2024, Wu was announced as a producer for a potential limited series based uponR. F. Kuang's 2023 novelYellowface that had been optioned byLionsgate Television.[53] In December 2025, she was a guest narrator atDisney's Candlelight Processional at Walt Disney World.[54]
Wu is an activist regarding Asian representation in U.S. media, and has expressed her support for bringing more diversity into the film industry. Wu has shared her stories regarding times that she had been denied roles due to her racial background, and stated her hopes that her success would pave more paths for diverse representation in the U.S. film industry.[55] The #StarringConstanceWu hashtagmeme, adopted byAsian-American activists, inserts Wu's image intofilm promotional materials in order to highlight the lack of actors of Asian descent in starring roles.[56][57]
In 2017, Wu worked with Miry's List, an organization that provides essential kits to newly arrived immigrants and refugee families inSouthern California, stating in an interview withTeen Vogue that she wants to be active in her care of "people with the courage to make an immigrant journey in search of peace, safety and well-being for their families."[58]
In 2023, Wu was one of the actors to sign an open letter praising PresidentJoe Biden advocating for the release of theOctober 7th hostages. She signed alongsideGal Gadot,Bradley Cooper,Madonna,Bob Odenkirk,Taika Waititi,Tyler Perry, andZoe Saldaña.[59][60]
Wu released her first book, the memoirMaking a Scene, in October 2022.[61][62][63] In it, she claimed to have experienceddate rape in her twenties.[64]
Wu lives inBrooklyn inNew York.[65][66] In December 2011, Wu met actor Ben Hethcoat, whom she dated until February 2018.[67][68][69] In November 2018, Wu spoke out about online harassment and criticism she had received for dating Hethcoat, who is white.[70] In August 2020, Wu gave birth to her first child, a girl, with her boyfriend Ryan Kattner, frontman of the bandMan Man.[71][72] On February 21, 2023, Wu announced her second pregnancy in an Instagram story,[73] and on July 20, 2023, she revealed she gave birth to her second child, a son.[74]
In May 2019, afterFresh Off the Boat was renewed for its sixth and final season, Wu made several social media posts expressing her unhappiness with the renewal, including commenting "Dislike" on the show'sInstagram post announcing the renewal and tweeting, "So upset right now that I'm literally crying. Ugh. Fuck".[75] Several days later, Wu clarified that she had been angry at the show's renewal because it had forced her to drop out of another project that she was "really passionate about," one that would have been an artistic challenge compared to her role inFresh Off the Boat. She further stated that she loved her cast mates and harbored no animosity towards them.[76] The posts sparked backlash on social media.
In July 2022, Wu revealed that the controversy, and specifically several private messages from "a fellow Asian actress" who told Wu that she had "become a blight on the Asian American community", had prompted her to attempt suicide; she was found by a friend and saved. Wu abstained from social media for the subsequent three years and decreased her acting workload to "focus on [her] mental health", which included enteringpsychotherapy.[77]
In September 2022, Wu stated in interviews that she was the target ofsexual harassment by an unspecified producer ofFresh Off the Boat, which had contributed to her initial reaction to the news of the show's renewal.[78]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Stephanie Daley | Jenn | |
| The Architect | Michelle | ||
| 2007 | Year of the Fish | Lucy | |
| 2011 | Sound of My Voice | Christine | |
| 2012 | Watching TV with the Red Chinese | Kimi Hu | |
| 2013 | Best Friends Forever | Melanie | |
| 2014 | Electric Slide | Mika Oh | |
| 2015 | Parallels | Polly | |
| 2017 | The Feels | Andi | |
| The Lego Ninjago Movie | The Mayor of Ninjago (voice) | ||
| Nine Minutes | Lilian | short film | |
| 2018 | Crazy Rich Asians | Rachel Chu | |
| Next Gen | Molly Su (voice) | ||
| 2019 | Hustlers | Destiny | |
| 2021 | Wish Dragon | Mrs. Song (voice) | |
| I Was a Simple Man | Grace | ||
| 2022 | Jennifer Lopez: Halftime | Herself | Documentary film |
| Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile | Katie Primm | ||
| 2024 | The Friend | Tuesday | |
| 2026 | The Outer Limit[79][80] | Post-production |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Candy | Episode: "Underbelly" |
| 2007 | One Life to Live | Laudine Lee | 3 episodes |
| 2011 | Torchwood | Shawnie Yamaguchi | Episode: "Miracle Day: End of the Road" |
| 2012–2017 | EastSiders | Kathy | Main role |
| 2013 | Browsers | Prudence Yu | Television pilot |
| Covert Affairs | Wendy Chen | Episode: "Rock a My Soul" | |
| 2014 | Franklin & Bash | Caroline Chilton | Episode: "Falcon's Nest" |
| High Moon | Mikiko Kobiyashi | Unsold television pilot[81] | |
| 2015 | Childrens Hospital | Pepsi Lamarr | Episode: "Up at 5"" |
| 2015–2020 | Fresh Off the Boat | Jessica Huang | Main role |
| 2016 | Royal Pains | Amy Chang | Episode: "Fly Me to Kowloon" |
| 2017 | Dimension 404 | Jane | Episode: "Bob" |
| 2021 | Solos | Jenny | Episode: "Jenny"[82] |
| 2022 | The Terminal List | Katie Buranek | Main role, 8 episodes |
| Celebrity Jeopardy! | Herself | Contestant | |
| 2023–2024 | Velma | Daphne Blake | Voice |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | And The Earth Moved | Jenny | 45th Street Theatre | [83] |
| 2005 | The Tempest | Miranda | Virginia Shakespeare Festival | |
| 2006 | Ping Pong Diplomacy | Zhu | 59E59 Theaters | |
| 2022 | 2:22 A Ghost Story | Jenny | Ahmanson Theatre | |
| 2023 | Little Shop of Horrors | Audrey Fulquard | Westside Theatre | |
| 2024 | Shit. Meet. Fan. | Hannah | MCC Theater |
Wu has earned several accolades, including nominations for aGolden Globe Award, aScreen Actors Guild Award, twoCritics' Choice Movie Awards, fourCritics' Choice Television Awards, and twoTCA Awards.
Constance Wu, a recent graduate of SUNY Purchase in New York
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