Meng'er Zhang | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 张梦儿 | |||||||||
 Zhang in 2023 | |||||||||
| Born | Zhang Meng'er (1987-04-22)April 22, 1987 (age 38) | ||||||||
| Education | |||||||||
| Occupation | Actress | ||||||||
| Spouse | |||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 张梦儿 | ||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 張夢兒 | ||||||||
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Meng'er Zhang (Chinese:张梦儿;pinyin:Zhāng Mèng'er; born April 22, 1987)[1] is a Chinese actress best known for portrayingXu Xialing in the 2021Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) filmShang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Zhang 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 inNanjing, where she was born and raised, andShanghai. In 2009, she graduated fromNanjing University of the Arts with a bachelor's degree.[2] She attended theEast 15 Acting School inEssex and theRussian Institute of Theater Arts inMoscow.[3]
In 2009, Zhang participated in China'sSuper 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, titledFinding 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 ofThe Street of Dawn (黎明之街) where she played Nakanishi Akiba (仲系 秋叶),[9] and inOliver Twist where she playedDodger.[6][10] In 2019, she was inIn 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]
Shang-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 bothMandarin Chinese andEnglish. After being cast forShang-Chi, she received intensemartial artsstunt training.[13] During production ofShang-Chi, she took advice from co-starBen Kingsley on the distinction between stage- and camera-acting,[14] and directorDestin 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 ofThe Witcher for its third season as a human hunter named Milva.[16]
On May 10, 2021, Zhang married Yung Lee, an action designer onShang-Chi, whom she met on the set of the film. TheShang-Chi cast and crew, including her costarsSimu Liu andAwkwafina, hosted a surprise wedding reception for them atDisneyland.[17][18][19]
| 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 | Seasons 3 & 4; Recurring | [20] |
| 2024 | What If...? | Xu Xialing (voice) | Episode: "What If... 1872?" | [21] |
| Year | Title | Roles | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Finding Destiny 《寻找初恋》 | Luo Yan 骆颜 | [7] | |
| 2014 | The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane | [22] | ||
| 2016 | The Moon and Sixpence | [23] | ||
| 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] |
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