Ken Leung
| Ken Leung | |
|---|---|
 Leung in 2010 | |
| Born |
Kenneth Leung January 21, 1970 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater | New York University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Home town |
Two Bridges, Manhattan Midwood, Brooklyn Old Bridge, New Jersey |
Kenneth "Ken" Leung (born January 21, 1970) is an American actor who is best known as Miles Straume in Lost, Admiral Statura in Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Kid Omega in X-Men: The Last Stand.
Early life
Ken Leung was born in New York City and initially raised in the Two Bridges section of the Lower East Side of Manhattan. His family moved to Midwood, Brooklyn, where he grew up before finishing high school in Old Bridge, New Jersey.
Leung later attended New York University (NYU) as a University Scholar. He discovered acting in his junior year, when he studied acting with Catherine Russell and Nan Smithner, and then briefly with Anne Jackson at HB Studio. During this time he acted mostly in downtown spaces and black box theaters, working with groups such as the Ma-Yi Theater Company, New Perspectives, and STAR, a traveling group of actors-educators based at Mount Sinai Hospital.
Career
In 1997, Leung made his debut as the villainous henchman Sang in Brett Ratner's Rush Hour. Ratner stated, "[Leung]'s a great actor. In my opinion, he's equivalent to Philip Seymour Hoffman as far as talent is concerned."[1] He would later work with Ratner in the films Red Dragon, The Family Man, and X-Men: The Last Stand. Edward Norton cast Leung in his directorial debut Keeping the Faith in 2000. According to The Washington Post, Norton said Leung's "showstopping performance...turned a throwaway scene into one of the film's best."[2] Impressed with his acting skills, Norton said that Leung would be appropriate for a role in Hamlet or Osborne's Look Back in Anger: "You sense hidden levels within him and he conveys an intensity of mind. I don't think anybody's tapped his full range yet."[3] Additionally, Leung has appeared in several independent and television films, as well as features, including four films with Brett Ratner and two with Spike Lee. In 1998, he played James the Less and God in Terrence McNally's passion play, Corpus Christi, and in 2002 made his Broadway debut in the musical Thoroughly Modern Millie (also appearing on the cast recording).
In 2007, he starred in the independent film Shanghai Kiss with Hayden Panettiere, and earned a Special Mention at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival. That same year he guest-starred in the final season of the HBO drama series The Sopranos. He followed this with the ABC drama Lost as Miles Straume from the series' fourth season through the rest of its run.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Pictures of Baby Jane Doe | Shopkeeper | |
| Welcome to the Dollhouse | Barry | ||
| 1997 | Red Corner | Peng | |
| Kundun | (voice) | ||
| 1998 | Fly | Jeremy Kim | |
| Rush Hour | Sang | ||
| 1999 | Man of the Century | Mike Ramsey | |
| 2000 | Keeping the Faith | Don | |
| Maze | Dr. Mikao | ||
| The Family Man | Sam Wong the Deli Clerk | ||
| 2001 | A.I. Artificial Intelligence | Syatyoo-Sama | |
| Home Sweet Hoboken | |||
| Spy Game | Li | ||
| Vanilla Sky | Art Editor | ||
| 2002 | Face | Willie | |
| Red Dragon | Lloyd Bowman | ||
| 2004 | Saw | Detective Steven Sing | |
| Strip Search | Liu Tsung-Yuan | television film | |
| Sucker Free City | Lincoln Ma | ||
| 2005 | Hate | Mo | |
| The Squid and the Whale | School Therapist | ||
| 2006 | Inside Man | Wing | |
| X-Men: The Last Stand | Kid Omega | ||
| 2007 | Year of the Fish | Johnny | |
| Shanghai Kiss | Liam Liu | Received a Special Mention at the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival for his breakthrough performance. | |
| Falling for Grace | Ming | ||
| 2008 | Saw V | Detective Steven Sing | Cameo |
| 2009 | Works of Art | John Kim | |
| 2015 | Star Wars: The Force Awakens | Admiral Statura |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995, 2000, 2002 | Law & Order | Chung; Tommy Wong; Stephen Wong | |
| 1997 | New York Undercover | David Kwan | Episode: "Vendetta" |
| 2000 | Wonderland | Episode: "Spell Check" | |
| Deadline | Fung | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 2001 | Oz | Bian Yixue | Episode: "Conversions" |
| 2004 | The Jury | Ken Arata | Episode: "Memories" |
| Whoopi | Terrence | Episode: "Identity Crisis" | |
| 2007 | The Sopranos | Carter Chong | Episode: "Remember When" |
| 2008–2010 | Lost | Miles Straume | Series regular; 45 episodes |
| 2011 | The Good Wife | Shen Yuan | Episode: "Great Firewall" |
| 2012–2013 | Person of Interest | Leon Tao | Recurring character: Episodes "The Contingency," "Critical," "Relevance," "All In" |
| 2013 | Zero Hour | Father Reggie | |
| Deception | Donald Cheng | ||
| 2014-2016[4] | The Night Shift | Topher Zia | Series Regular, 35 episodes |
References
- ↑ Dawkins, Walter. "Ken Leung: Quiet Actor, Always Kept to Himself . . .", The Washington Post, May 25, 2008.
- ↑ Dawkins, Walter. "Ken Leung: Quiet Actor, Always Kept to Himself". Washingtonpost.com. Washington Post Co. Retrieved 17 January 2015.
- ↑ Dawkins, Walter. "Ken Leung:Quiet Actor, Always Kept to Himself". Washingtonpost.com. Washington Post Co. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
- ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (November 22, 2016). "'The Night Shift': Ken Leung Not returning for Season 4". Deadline. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
External links
- Ken Leung at the Internet Movie Database
- Ken Leung at the Internet Broadway Database
- Interviews
- Asia Pacific Arts - UCLA Asia Institute, May 30, 2008
- Hillis, Aaron. "Interview: Ken Leung on 'Year of the Fish'", IFC.com, August 27, 2008