Brenda Song

At 36 years old, Brenda Song has this physical status:

Brenda Song (born March 27, 1988) is an American actress.

She started in show business as a child fashion model, and her early television work included roles in the television shows Fudge (1995) and 100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd (1999).

After many commercials and television roles in the late 1990s, Song appeared in The Ultimate Christmas Present (2000), and won a Young Artist Award for her performance.

In 2002, Song signed a contract with Disney Channel and starred in the 2002 Disney Channel Original Movie Get a Clue and then made significant contributions to the channel, including starring in films such as Stuck in the Suburbs (2004), Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior (2006), and many other productions.

In 2005, Song began playing the lead female role of London Tipton in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, and later reprised the role on The Suite Life on Deck.

The character is noted as one of the Disney Channel's longest continuous characters.Song made her transition into mainstream movies in 2010 when she appeared in the critically acclaimed film The Social Network.

She also starred in the short indie film First Kiss.

In 2012 and 2013, she had recurring roles in Scandal and New Girl.

In 2013–2014, she starred in the Fox TV series Dads.

In October 2014, Song signed a talent holding deal with Fox and 20th Century Fox Television to star in a television project.

Since then, Song has been cast in several television pilots for NBC and CBS.

She also starred in the CBS drama Pure Genius.

In 2017, Song was cast in two new movies: Changeland and Angry Angel.

Song was cast in 2018 in the TV series Station 19 for a multi-episode arc.

Song starred in the Netflix psychological thriller film Secret Obsession (2019), and has lent her voice to Anne Boonchuy in Disney's animated series Amphibia.

Early life

Brenda Song was born on March 27, 1988, in Carmichael, California, a suburb of Sacramento, to a Thai and Hmong family. Her paternal grandparents were from the Xiong clan (熊; Xyooj in Hmong), but changed their last name to Song in order to land an acting role. Her parents were born in Thailand and met as adults in Sacramento. Her father works as a school teacher and her mother is a homemaker. She has two younger brothers named Timmy and Nathan Song.

When she was six years old, Song moved with her mother to Los Angeles, California, to support her acting career; the rest of the family followed two years later. As a young girl, Song wanted to do ballet, while her younger brother wanted to take taekwondo. She said, "My mom only wanted to take us to one place," so they settled on taekwondo. Although Song cried all the way through her first class, she now holds a black belt in taekwondo. Song was named an All-American Scholar in the ninth grade. She was homeschooled and earned a high school diploma at age 16, then took courses at a community college. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 2009, majoring in psychology and minoring in business.

Personal life

From 2010 to 2017, Song was in an on-and-off relationship with musician Trace Cyrus, to whom she was engaged from 2011 to 2012. In 2017, Song began dating actor Macaulay Culkin. Their son, Dakota Song Culkin, born on April 5, 2021, was named after Culkin's late sister Dakota.

Source

Career

After being discovered in a shopping mall by an agent from a modeling academy, Song began performing as a kid fashion model in San Francisco. She first appeared in a Little Caesars commercial at the age of five or six, followed by a Barbie commercial. Elizabeth Sung's first film appearance appeared in the 1995 Requiem, an AFI student short film. "She came out confident [at the auditions]. She was very concentrated, and it was evident that she loved what she was doing," Sung said. Fong, a waitress/dancer who remembers her loving brother and their bittersweet childhood in Hong Kong, is the subject of the film. The seven-year-old Song played a young version of "Fong," who is portrayed as an adult by Tamlyn Tomita. The film received a CINE Golden Eagle award. In another short film directed by Elizabeth Sung titled The White Fox, she appeared in another short film directed by Elizabeth Sung called The White Fox. Song appeared in two episodes of the television show Thunder Alley and was a regular in the children's television series Fudge, in which she played Jenny. Hulk Hogan, a 1996 independent film starring professional wrestler Hulk Hogan, made her theatrical debut in Santa with Muscles, a professional wrestler.

She appeared in the Nickelodeon television series 100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd (1997), where she appeared in thirteen episodes as Sariffa Chung. She appeared on television shows including 7th Heaven, Judging Amy, ER, Once and Again, The Brothers Garca, Popular, Bette, The Nightmare Room, For the People, and George Lopez, among other things. Two of Song's early appearances earned them awards in the Young Artist Competition. "Best Performance in a TV Movie Comedy," supporting a Young Actress" in the 2000 Disney Channel Original Movie, The Ultimate Christmas Presenter. Allison Thompson (Hallee Hirsh) and Samantha Kwan (Song), two young girls, explore a weather machine and make it snow in Los Angeles, are the subject of the film. "Best Performance in a TV Comedian Comedy Series, Guest Starring Young Actress" was her 2002 appearance on The Bernie Mac Show. She appeared in Like Mike, the 20th Century Fox family film that grossed over $60 million in the same year. Bow Wowness, a rapper who will now play NBA-level basketball, appears in the film as an orphanage. Reg Stevens, a thirteen-year-old orphanage, is depicted in the song. It was profitable enough to warrant a sequel. Song did not appear in the sequel.

Song signed a Disney contract in 2002 and appeared in the Disney Channel film Get a Clue (alongside Lindsay Lohan). After 2002, Song began to appear in popular sitcoms such as That's So Raven and One on One. Tia in the Disney Channel series Phil of the Future was a regular character in the series, appearing in seven episodes between 2004 and 2005. In Summer 2004, Song appeared in the Disney Channel Original Movie Stuck in the Suburbs, portraying Natasha Kwon-Schwartz. The television premiere attracted 3.7 million viewers. The film is about two teen girls in suburbia who mistakenly exchange cell phones with a well-known teen singer. "I was like wow that film must have done so well when Stuck came out because we went to Six Flags and we were there, and so many kids recognized us from Stuck in the Suburbs." In a W Magazine interview, Song discussed three life-changing events that happened when she was 15, including an early admission to Harvard University that she turned down. "My mom died of breast cancer for the first time," she said, and I was accepted into the school I'd always aspired to attend." 'Here's the thing,'s my dad, who is a schoolteacher, sat down and said, 'Here's the thing.' If acting is what you want to do, you have a fantastic chance. Education is the most significant factor. You go to college to find out what you want to do, but if that is what you want to do, you have a chance to do it."

In 2005, Song began appearing in the Disney Channel Original Series, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. In an early draft of a script and alludes to Paris Hilton, the role was titled "Paris" (London parodying Paris), and Tipton is the hotel her father owns in the film). Ashley Tisdale was pleasantly surprised to discover her companion Ashley Tisdale working in the role after she was rejected for the role. "I wish I could be her," the song says. I wish I had her closet." The series is about the residents and workers at the fictional Tipton Hotel in Boston, and it mainly centers around Zack and Cody Martin (Dylan and Cole Sprouse), and London Tipton (Song). On March 18, 2005, the Disney Channel premiered the series, grossing four million viewers, making it the most popular premiere for the Disney Channel in 2005. Analysts often lauded Song's role in the Suite Life collection. According to a news published on the Disney Channel in April 2009, Tipton said that "Song is the One to Steal the Spotlight" on the Disney Channel. "If you ever watched an episode of 'The Suite Life with Zack & Cody,' you should know that the show is watchable due to one person, London Tipton.' Brenda plays London, the ditzy spoiled hotel heiress (an allusion to Paris Hilton) and, if I could say so myself, she does a good job doing so." "Song is one of the main reasons why the "Suite Life" franchise remains one of the most profitable and highly rated series in the Disney stable," MSN's 2009 cover story on the series. The character was described as a "melodramatic high-seas diva" in a 2009 People magazine article. "Best Family Television Series (comedy)" received Emmy awards for "Outstanding Children's Program (twice) and "Outstanding Choreography"), as well as three Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award nominations for "Best Family Television Series" in 2007, 2008, and 2009. In 2006, Song received an Asian Excellence Award for her role in the series.

Song made a cameback on the Disney Channel and appeared in Disney Channel's American Dragon: Jake Long's debut on the Suite Life show, and she appeared in Disney Channel's American Dragon: Jake Long series. In 2006, Song appeared in Holidaze: The Christmas That Almost Didn't Happened. Yay Me, a film series starring London Tipton. The song appeared on numerous Disney Channel television shows, and she was a member of the Disney Channel Circle of Stars. She appeared on "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes" (British Edition DVD and the DisneyMania 4 CD, which was released in April 2006, she was included in the recording and music video of a version of "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes." Song performed "Bop To The Top" and "Really Good" in the Suite Life High School Musical-themed episode. The online version of "Really Great" by London Tipton was the theme tune for the London Tipton's Yay Me! On another Suite Life episode, she sang "Bling Is My Favourite Thing." Song intentionally sang poorly in character as London Tipton in these episodes. Ian Scott wrote and performed demo songs for her in 2008, a project for Mark Jackson Productions.

In the 2006 Disney Channel Original Movie Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, which attracted over 5.7 million viewers at its premiere, it was the singer's first starring role as the title character. Wendy Wu was supposed to be a comedic actor but the film's producers were having trouble finding a suitable actor to play the main character, first named Kenny Lu. "Brenda was brought in to play the [supporting] monk's role," one of the films' producers, Lydia Cook, said. We started training with her in martial arts, and that's when we discovered that she should be Kenny Lu. Brendan took the lead in the film as they quickly switched to another location. She had the perfect blend of wit and martial arts. In a screen test before landing the role, the singer had to break a brick with her hand. According to The New York Times, the film became a "star vehicle" for Song. The film was about an ordinary, popular Chinese-American teenager whose life is turned upside down by the visit of a young Chinese monk (Shin Koyamada). The monk argues she is the reincarnation of a mighty female warrior and the only one who will have adamantly evil spirit from destroying the world. Wendy and the majority of her family's families are having trouble retaining their culture and roots in a second story line. Before filming the film, Song believed she could relate to the message because she knew nothing about her own people. "I really identified with Wendy because I don't want to know where I came from," she said. She travelled to Malaysia, Singapore, and Costa Rica to promote the film. She posed for the cover of Seventeen, Teenager, Seventeen Malaysia, and several other magazines. In 2007, Wendy Wu, the fourth generation Warrior sequel starring Song and Koyamada, was announced. Critical commentators applauded the film. "UniqueDisney.com" described the role as "a strong departure from her tumultuous London Tipton character in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody," adding that Song "shows in this film that she no longer has to restrict herself to playing the dumb one." "Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior" is a fun little telefilm, with killer action sequences (for a DCOM), and a wonderful showcase of talent in both acting and martial for Brenda Song, according to the site. It's worth 91 minutes of your time, aside from a few totally unrealistic characters and situations. Even when playing a shallow airhead, Allmovie described Song as a "charming and appealing personality." Although lauding Disney for the strong Asian cast, a BellaOnline study found that it is unusual to see a female martial arts actress with a black belt. Song did the bulk of her own stunt work for the film, with help from Koichi Sakamoto, executive producer for the Power Rangers series. By the way her mother dealt with breast cancer in 2005, she was inspired to go through stunt training. Gary Marsh, a Disney Channel executive, said of Song: "Buffy the Vampire Slayer Meets Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" is "incredibly talented, she's smart." She brings a little bit of humor to our website, as well as a genuine kid.

In the Suite Life spin-off, The Suite Life on Deck, Song reprised her role as London Tipton. The show's premiere on the Disney Channel attracted 5.7 million viewers, making it the most viewed series premiere on Canada's Family Channel. In 2008, the show became the most watched scripted series among children aged 6 to 11. In 2009, the program became the most watched scripted series among children and the second most watched scripted series among pre-teens. For the second and third seasons of the series, Disney bought the rights. "Macy's Presents Little Spirit: Christmas in New York" starred Paige in an animated television special for NBC. In late 2008, Song made a special appearance at the RTA HealthLine's grand opening in Cleveland. Gary Marsh, Disney Channel's executive vice president, released a press release in May 2009, which stated: "With this second-season extension, the cast of 'The Suite Life' makes Disney Channel history by becoming the longest running continuous characters on our air – 138 half-hour episodes." We're thrilled for them, as well as the outstanding, inspired production team that made this extraordinary run possible." According to The Wall Street Journal, Song's participation in the series led to her becoming extremely popular among children aged 7 to ten. Maxine (Lisa Edelstein), a film about a bonded courier, and Alice (Song) starred in the telefilm Special Delivery, a film about a homeless teen. It's called a "likeable comeback" by the Daily Record. Song's role in the film was lauded by the Australian publication Urban CineFilm. In addition to that, Song performed in Raven-Symoné and Martin Lawrence's film College Road Trip.

In 2010, Song appeared on Columbia Pictures' The Social Network's main cast, alongside Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, and Justin Timberlake. Christy Lee, a Harvard University undergraduate who dates Eduardo Saverin, was depicted in the song (Andrew Garfield). In 2012, Song appeared in the short film First Kiss, as well as her Social Network costar Joseph Mazzello. First Kiss was shown at numerous film festivals around the country and received the Best Short Film award at the Omaha Film Festival and TriMedia Film Festival. In 2012 and 2013, Song appeared in the TV series Scandal's first and second seasons as Alissa. In 2013, Song appeared as Daisy in New Girl for a recurring basis. In August 2013, Song appeared in a significant role in the Fox television series Dads, in which Song played Veronica. The show's pilot episode was mocked by Asian American watchdog organizations because Song's costume, which was labeled "racist" by watchdog organisations, was mocked. Song defended the show in an interview with Entertainment Weekly and denied the racial charges. Fox refused to re-shoot the scenes because they had been deemed "racial by watchdog companies." The show premiered on September 17, 2013, but Fox canceled the series in May 2014 after only one season.

Song and 20th Century Fox Television developed a talent holding agreement in October 2014 to star in a television show. In April 2015, Song appeared in the NBC comedy pilot Take It From Us. Bonnie was in Life in Pieces as Bonnie in November 2015. In February 2016, Song appeared in CBS pilot Bunker Hill. Pure Genius, a later CBS acquisition, was picked up by CBS and is expected to premiere in the 2016-2017 television season. In March 2017, Song appeared in the CBS series Real Life as a series regular. Changeland, Seth Green's debut directorial debut, also included her. It was announced in August 2017 that Song would be in Freeform's first original holiday film, Angry Angel. The film is the first installment of the network's "Countdown to 25 Days of Christmas" series of programs, which premiered on November 18, 2017. Song would appear in new show Station 19 for a multi-episode arch in March 2018. It was announced in December 2018 that Song would appear in Netflix's psychological thriller Secret Obsession. On July 18, 2019, the film was released. In January 2019, it was revealed that Song and Kat Dennings will appear in the Hulu television series Dollface. Anne Boonchuy has been starring in the Disney animation series Amphibia since June 17, 2019. She appeared in the Seth Green film Changeland in June 2019. She also appeared in Aly & AJ's music video for the song "Star Maps," from their 2019 EP Sanctuary. Vanessa Vue, a female news anchor, appeared on The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder in 2022. Alexa, the lead role in the Amazon Freevee original film Love Accidentally, appeared in 2022. "The film under-uses Brenda Song," Radhika Menon of Decider wrote.

Source