Zoë Chao
Zoë Chao | |
---|---|
Born | Zoë Carroll Chao[1] |
Education | |
Occupations |
|
Zoë Carroll Chao is an American television and stage actress and screenwriter, principally known for her roles as Isobel in Strangers and Zoë in The Afterparty.
Early life
[edit]Chao was born in Providence, Rhode Island, United States.[2] Her mother has Irish and English ancestry, while her father is of Chinese descent. Her paternal grandmother immigrated from China to Michigan.[3] Chao has stated that she grew up in a family of visual artists.[3] After graduating from the Wheeler School in 2004,[4] she received her BA in art history from Brown University and her MFA from the graduate acting program at UCSD.[5]
Career
[edit]Chao has participated in theatre productions, including La Jolla Playhouses' Sideways, Surf Report, and WoW Festivals' Our Town, and Ensemble Theatre Company's Amadeus. In 2016, she appeared in the Off Broadway play Friend Art at Second Stage.[6] She has worked with directors Christopher Guest, Les Waters, Ping Chong and Chris Ashley.
Chao also starred in her own TV series, God Particles, which she wrote and produced. She co-produced the 2017 short Like Animals. She is perhaps best known for starring as Isobel in Strangers,[7] the first three episodes of which were screened at the Sundance Film Festival.[8]
In 2022-23, Chao was in the main cast of the Apple TV+ mystery comedy series The Afterparty. In April 2023, Chao was cast as Nina Mazursky in the animated television series Creature Commandos, written and created by James Gunn for the DC Universe based on the comic book team of the same name.[9]
In 2024, Chao was cast in the comedy Let's Have Kids opposite Karen Gillan.[10]
Personal life
[edit]During the filming of Strangers, Chao relocated from New York City to Los Angeles.[3]
Filmography
[edit]† | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
Film
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | My Girlfriend's Abroad | ||
2014 | The Gordon Game | Wife | Short |
2015 | Dirty Beautiful | Jamie | |
Dirty Garden | Short | ||
Center Pedal | Y | Short | |
2017 | Like Animals | Mary | Short |
2019 | Where'd You Go, Bernadette | Soo-Lin | |
Almost Love | Haley | ||
2020 | Downhill | Rosie | |
The High Note | Katie | ||
I Used to Go Here | Laura | ||
2021 | Long Weekend | Vienna | |
2022 | Family Squares | Kelly | Also FF & GG Camera Operator |
Senior Year | Tiffany Blanchette | ||
2023 | Your Place or Mine | Minka | |
Somebody I Used to Know | Ramona | ||
If You Were the Last | Jane Kuang[11] | ||
2024 | Nightbitch † | Post-production | |
2025 | The Roses | Filming |
Television
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2011 | The Protector | BAO House Girl | Episode: "Beef" |
2012 | Hart of Dixie | Dr. Lee | Episode: "Disaster Drills & Departures" |
2014 | God Particles | Rue | 4 episodes |
2014 | The Comeback | Shayna | 4 episodes |
2015 | Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn | Ms. Nakamura | Episode: "Sweet Foot Rides" |
2015 | Monster Girls | Halfoff | TV short |
2016 | Rizzoli & Isles | Mimi Tanaka | Episode: "A Shot in the Dark" |
2016 | That's What She Said | TV miniseries | |
2017–18 | Strangers | Isobel | Main role |
2018 | Succession | Joyce Miller's Staff | Episode: "Sad Sack Wasp Trap" |
2019 | The OA | Mo | 2 episodes |
2019 | Living with Yourself | Kaylyn | Recurring role |
2020–21 | Love Life | Sara Yang | Main role (season 1) Guest role (season 2) |
2021 | Modern Love | Zoe | Episode: "The Night Girl Finds a Day Boy" |
2022 | Central Park | (voice) | Episode: "The Puffs Go Poof" |
2022–23 | The Afterparty | Zoë Zhu | Main role |
2023 | Celebrity Jeopardy! | Herself | Contestant |
2023 | Party Down | Lucy Dang | Main role (season 3) |
2024 | Creature Commandos † | Nina Mazursky (voice) | Main role |
Awards and nominations
[edit]Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | International Academy of Web Television Awards | Best Female Performance in a Comedy | God Particles | Won |
References
[edit]- ^ "Zoë Chao and Tracee Ellis Ross On Airplane Rituals, Instagram, and the Art of the Irish Exit". Interviewmagazine.com. August 15, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
- ^ a b "ZOË CHAO". ISSUE Magazine. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
BIRTH DATE: 9/19/85 BIRTH PLACE: Providence, RHODE ISLAND
- ^ a b c "In 'Strangers,' Actress Zoe Chao Explores Bisexuality and the Late-20s Identity Crisis". NBC News. October 20, 2017. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
- ^ "Facebook Post". The Wheeler School. August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
- ^ "STRANGERS- An original series by Mia Lidofsky". Indiegogo.com. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
- ^ Isherwood, Charles (May 27, 2016). "In the Comic 'Friend Art,' Some Opinions Are Better Left Unsaid". The New York Times. Retrieved May 27, 2016.
- ^ ""Strangers" Is The Show Nailing The Hilarious, Sad Struggles of Adulting". Refinery29.com. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
- ^ "Refinery29 Debuts Scripted Series 'Strangers' at Sundance". Wwd.com. January 25, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
- ^ Oddo, Marco (April 12, 2023). "Here's the Full Cast of DC's 'Creatures Commandos' [Exclusive]". Collider. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
- ^ Kit, Borys (April 29, 2024). "Karen Gillan and Zoë Chao to Star in MRC Comedy 'Let's Have Kids!'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 13, 2024.
- ^ Mintzer, Jordan (March 12, 2023). "'If You Were the Last' Review: Anthony Mackie and Zoë Chao in an Outer-Space Rom-Com Whose Boosters Fail to Ignite". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
External links
[edit]- 1985 births
- Living people
- Actresses from Providence, Rhode Island
- 21st-century American actresses
- 21st-century American screenwriters
- 21st-century American women writers
- American television writers
- American actresses of Chinese descent
- American film actresses
- American television actresses
- American women television writers
- Brown University alumni
- Screenwriters from Rhode Island
- University of California, San Diego alumni
- Writers from Providence, Rhode Island