Tzi Ma

At 61 years old, Tzi Ma has this physical status:

Tzi Ma (born June 10, 1962) is a Hong Kong actor whose film and television series appearances include Dante's Peak, Rush Hour, 24, Arrival, and The Man in the High Castle.

Early life and education

Ma was born in Hong Kong and was the youngest of seven children. Following political turmoil in Hong Kong, Ma's father moved to Hong Kong during the Chinese Communist Revolution in 1949, then to the United States when Ma was five years old. Ma grew up in New York, where his parents owned Ho Wah, an American Chinese restaurant on Staten Island. Lau Sing Kee, a Mamigrant, had previously owned the restaurant, according to Ma. He discovered his passion for acting while playing Buffalo Bill in Annie Get Your Gun, a primary school production.

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Career

Ma, although often thought of as the familiar Asian face in film and television, has deep roots to theatre. Mako's appearance in 1976's Pacific Overtures as a major influence on his actor career. He is close friends with playwright David Henry Hwang, who appeared in several plays, including FOB, Yellow Face, Flower Drum Song, and The Dance and the Railroad, as well as appearing in Hwang's Golden Gate (1993), which was written by the actor. In 1973, Ma began acting in experimental theater. At the time, he was living in Nassau Community College, studying acting and teaching. In 1975, the Monkey King appeared in a stage revival of a Beijing opera titled Monkey King in the Yellow Stone King, a first theatre performance. According to him, there were about 5 to ten thousand viewers in attendance.

Before doing film work, the Maoris also studied martial arts. Jimmy Lee in Cocaine Cowboys (1979) leveraged his talents in his film debut as Jimmy Lee.

Ma began acting in In Perpetuity Throughout the Universe during the 1988 Writer Guild of America attack in Orange County. The play concluded over the weekend, and by next week, he'd earned a role in the L.A. Law television series. He appeared in 1994 as the assistant director on a stage performance of Maxine Hong Kingston's The Woman Warrior by the Berkeley Repertory Theatre.

Credits in The Quiet American, The Ladykillers' reimagining, Dante's Peak, and Tigertail are among his film credits. In addition, he has appeared in Consul Han, GM Shang, the Chinese military commander in Denis Villeneuve's Arrival (2016), and Hua Zhou in Niki Caro's Disney live action version of Mulan (2020).

Ma has appeared in numerous Asian American-produced independent films, including Red Doors, Catfish in Black Bean Sauce (1999), Baby (2007), The Sensei (2008), and The Farewell (2019).

Ma was interviewed for The Slanted Screen (2006), Jeff Adachi's film about the representation of Asian, mainly East Asian men in Hollywood.

On the television show 24: Live Another Day, he is best known for his recurring role as Cheng Zhi, the head of defense for the Chinese Consulate (Los Angeles). He appeared in the series's fourth season and reprised the role in 24: Live Another Day. In the animated television series American Dad, Bába Ling, Francine's adoptive father, was also portrayed by him.

Lee "Nemesis" Hei, the first big villain and Sammo Law's arch-nemesis, appeared in the first season of Martial Law.

Other television appearances include guest appearances on MacGyver, Walker, Texas Ranger, Law & Order, Boomtown, Commander in Chief, M.S., and Hell on Wheels. In addition, Ma was also a voice in the video game Sleeping Dogs. "The Dragon" appeared on ABC's Once Upon a Time. On the US show Satisfaction, he also appeared as a zen master.

In the Amazon show The Man In The High Castle and as Tao on AMC's Hell On Wheels, he appeared as General Onoda. Ma was cast in Mr. Young's recurring role on Netflix's Wu Assassins in July 2018.

In 2020, Ma was cast as a series regular in The CW's latest revival of Kung Fu (1972). The show was revived for a second season in 2021.

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