Kelly Hu's Main TV Roles Show Character(s) Arrow China White The 100 Callie Phineas and Ferb Stacy Afro Samurai Okiku Nash Bridges Insp. Miche… Martial Law Chen Pei Pei In Case of Emergency Kelly Lee

Main Movie Roles

BIOGRAPHY:

Kelly Ann Hu (simplified Chinese: 胡凯丽; traditional Chinese: 胡凱麗; pinyin: Hú Kǎilì; born February 13, 1968) is an American actress and former fashion model.

Hu is best known for her role as Dr. Rae Chang on the American television soap opera Sunset Beach (1997). She has since starred in numerous TV shows and films including Nash Bridges (1997–1998), The Scorpion King (2002), Cradle 2 the Grave (2003), X-Men 2 as Yuriko Oyama/Lady Deathstrike (2003), Underclassman (2005), The Tournament (2009), The Vampire Diaries (2010–2011) and White Frog (2012).

Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, the daughter of Juanita, an engineering drafter for Honolulu, and Herbert Hu, a salesman and exotic bird breeder. Her parents divorced during Hu's childhood. Her brother, Glenn, is a Resource Manager in the United States Army. She is of Native Hawaiian, English American and Chinese American descent. She attended Maʻemaʻe Elementary School and Kamehameha Schools in Honolulu, Hawaii. She graduated from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.

Hu has held a lifelong interest in singing and dancing and has also been interested in martial arts since her early childhood. Hu's cousin was a successful model in Japan, and Hu decided to follow her example. Kelly Hu won the title of Miss Hawaii Teen USA and competed in the Miss Teen USA 1985 pageant, becoming the Miss Teen USA pageant's third titleholder in history and its first Asian American winner. Hu has mentioned in interviews that her mother had told her America was not ready for an Asian as such a prominent role model. Ironically enough, she discovered after winning that she was prohibited from appearing in non-contest related activities for the year of her reign, though this rule soon changed in later years.

In fall of 2010, Hu began a recurring role on the CBS television series Hawaii Five-0. In 2012, Hu was cast in the role of Karai in the animated series Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012). She commented: "It wouldn’t quite be the first time I played a ninja, I think. Yeah, I don’t know why people think I’m dangerous, but for some reason, I keep getting these roles for the ninja, assassin, bodyguard, bad-girl type".

In 2013, she joined the cast of the series Warehouse 13 as Abigail Cho, the new owner of the Warehouse-connected B&B.

Hu has been active to protect the Hawaiian ecology. She supported Reef Check Hawaii by running in and successfully completing the Honolulu Marathon to raise awareness for the organization. She also gave support to the Shark Fin Ban which took effect in Hawaii July 2010. This made it illegal to possess, sell, or distribute shark fins in Hawaii.


TRIVIA:

• Her older brother is a Lt. Colonel in US Army.
• Was the very first Asian American female to be crowned Miss Teen USA (1985)
• For a recent magazine interview, she showed how she made her favorite dish -- pork lumpia (fried spring rolls).
• In May 2005, she visited with soldiers in Iraq alongside 'Dean Cain' (qv) and 'Amanda Swisten' (qv). Unfortunately, she had to cut her visit short due to personal matters.
• Dated (1996-1998) Ahmad Ali Moussaui, an investment banker.
• She was cast in the attempted remake of _Dark Shadows (2004) (TV)_ (qv) for the WB in 2003-2004. She was ironically cast as the indomitable Dr. Julia Hoffman, a role immortalized by the late 'Grayson Hall' (qv).
• Miss Teen USA 1985.
• Winner of the Miss Photogenic award at Miss USA 1993