# Rosalind Chao

Rosalind Chao (born September 23, 1957) is an American actress, best known for playing Soon-Lee Klinger in the mid-1980s CBS show AfterMASH, Rose Hsu Jordan in the 1993 movie The Joy Luck Club, the recurring character Keiko O'Brien on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in the 1990s, and Dr. Kim on The O.C. in 2003. She also played Hua Li, Mulan's mother, in the live-action 2020 remake of Mulan. In 2024 she starred as Ye Wenjie in the Netflix production of 3 Body Problem.

## Early life and education

Rosalind Chao was born in Los Angeles, California, and raised in Anaheim. Her parents were performers with the Peking opera before they relocated to Anaheim, where they ran a successful pancake restaurant, Chao's Chinese and American Restaurant, across the street from Disneyland. Chao worked there from an early age.
She attended Pomona College in Claremont, California, and then the University of Southern California, where she earned a degree in broadcast journalism in 1978. She worked at Disneyland as an international tour guide, and contemplated pursuing journalism as a career.

## Career

Chao's parents were instrumental in her decision to pursue acting. She began acting at the age of five, in the California-based Peking opera traveling company with which her parents were involved. During the summer, they sent her to Taiwan for further acting study and experience.
As a child, she played the daughter of a laundry owner (played by James Hong) on a 1970 episode of Here's Lucy, "Lucy the Laundress".
Deciding not to pursue acting, Chao enrolled in the communications department at the University of Southern California where she earned her degree in journalism. However, after a year as a radio newswriting intern at the CBS-owned Hollywood radio station KNX, she returned to acting.
Chao's breakthrough role was that of Soon-Lee, a South Korean refugee, in the final episodes of the TV series M*A*S*H. Soon-Lee married longtime starring character Maxwell Klinger (Jamie Farr) in the series finale "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen", which aired on February 28, 1983, and was the most-watched U.S. sitcom television episode of all time as of 2021. Chao repeated the role in the M*A*S*H sequel, 1983's AfterMASH, her first role billed at co-star status.
Chao played Japanese exo-botanist Keiko O'Brien on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. In 2010, a preliminary casting memo for The Next Generation from 1987 was published, revealing that Chao was originally considered for the part of Enterprise security chief Tasha Yar.
In August 2018, Chao was cast as Mulan's mother in the 2020 live-action retelling of Mulan. In 2019, she was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, citing her contributions to the critically acclaimed films The Joy Luck Club and I Am Sam.

## Personal life

Chao met her husband Simon Templeman while they were working in theatre at the Mark Taper Forum. They have a son and a daughter.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1980 | The Big Brawl | Mae | |
| 1981 | Spider-Man: The Dragon's Challenge | Emily Chan | |
| 1981 | An Eye for an Eye | Linda Chen | |
| 1983 | Going Berserk | Kung Fu Girl | |
| 1987 | Slam Dance | Mrs. Bell | |
| 1987 | The Tribulations of a Chinese Gentleman | Lianhua | |
| 1988 | White Ghost | Thi Hau | |
| 1990 | Denial | Terry | |
| 1990 | Thousand Pieces of Gold | Lalu Nathoy/Polly Bemis | |
| 1992 | Memoirs of an Invisible Man | Cathy DiTolla | |
| 1993 | The Joy Luck Club | Rose | |
| 1994 | North | Chinese Mom | |
| 1994 | Love Affair | Lee | |
| 1997 | The End of Violence | Claire | |
| 1998 | What Dreams May Come | Leona | |
| 2000 | Enemies of Laughter | Carla | |
| 2001 | The Man from Elysian Fields | Female Customer | |
| 2001 | Impostor | Newscaster | Uncredited |
| 2001 | I Am Sam | Lily | |
| 2003 | Freaky Friday | Pei-Pei | |
| 2005 | Life of the Party | Mei Lin | |
| 2005 | Just like Heaven | Fran | |
| 2007 | Nanking | Chang Yu Zheng | |
| 2009 | The Rising Tide | Narrator | |
| 2012 | Knife Fight | Kate - Focus Group Moderator | |
| 2015 | Stockholm, Pennsylvania | Dr. Andrews | |
| 2017 | Tragedy Girls | Mayor Campbell | |
| 2019 | Plus One | Angela | |
| 2019 | The Laundromat | Gu Kailai | |
| 2020 | Mulan | Hua Li | |
| 2020 | Magic Camp | Lorraine | Uncredited |
| 2021 | Together Together | Dr. Andrews | |
| 2021 | The Starling | Fawn | |
| 2024 | Sacramento | TBA | Post-production |
| 2025 | Freakier Friday | Pei-Pei | Post-production |

### Television

| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1970 | Here's Lucy | Linda Wong | 1 episode |
| 1972 | Anna and the King | Princess Serana | 1 episode |
| 1973 | Kung Fu | Dancer | Season 1, Episode 5, "The Tide;" uncredited |
| 1976 | ABC Afterschool Specials | The Kurmese Ambassador's Daughter | 1 episode |
| 1977 | The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries | Lily | Episode: "The Secret of the Jade Kwan Yin" |
| 1977 | Kojak | Grace Chen | Episode: "The Summer of '69: Part 1" |
| 1978 | The Incredible Hulk | Receptionist | Episode: "Married" |
| 1979 | How the West Was Won | Li Sin | Episode: "China Girl" |
| 1979 | The Ultimate Imposter | Lai-Ping | Television film |
| 1979 | Emergency! The Convention | Kathy | Television film |
| 1979 | The Amazing Spider-Man | Emily Chan | Episode: "The Chinese Web" (Part 1 & 2) |
| 1979 | A Man Called Sloane | Soom Nuk | Episode: "Tuned for Destruction" |
| 1979 | Mysterious Island of Beautiful Women | Flower | Television film |
| 1981 | The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo | Leslie Chiu | Episode: "The Roller Disco Karate Kaper" |
| 1981 | The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island | Hotel Clerk | Television film |
| 1981 | Twirl | Kim King | Television film |
| 1981 | One Day at a Time | Gloria | Episode: "Julie Shows Up: Part 2" |
| 1981–83 | Diff'rent Strokes | Ming Li / Miss Chung | Recurring role (8 episodes) |
| 1982 | Moonlight | Daphne Wu | Television film |
| 1982 | Bring 'Em Back Alive | | Episode: "The Reel World of Frank Buck" |
| 1983 | The Terry Fox Story | Rika | Television film |
| 1983 | M*A*S*H | Soon-Lee | Recurring role (2 episodes) |
| 1983–85 | AfterMASH | Soon-Lee Klinger | Main cast (30 episodes) |
| 1986 | Riptide | Lucy | Episode – "Smiles We Left Behind" |
| 1986 | Falcon Crest | Li Ying | Recurring role (4 episodes) |
| 1986 | Jack and Mike | Holly Sykes | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 1986 | St. Elsewhere | Mary Wilson | Episode: "Not My Type" |
| 1986 | The A-Team | Alice Heath | Episode: "Point of No Return" |
| 1986 | American Playhouse | Ku Ling | Episode: "Paper Angels" |
| 1987 | Spies | | Episode: "From China with Love" |
| 1987 | Stingray | Colette Tran | Episode: "Anytime, Anywhere" |
| 1987 | Max Headroom | Angie Barry | 2 episodes |
| 1987 | Private Eye | Kai-Lee | Episode: "Nobody Dies in Chinatown" |
| 1988 | Beauty and the Beast | Lin Wong | Episode: "China Moon" |
| 1988 | Tour of Duty | Li Kiem | Episode: "Gray-Brown Odyssey" |
| 1988 | Shooter | Lan | Television film |
| 1988 | Miami Vice | Mai Ying | Episode: "Heart of Night" |
| 1989 | Jake and the Fatman | Elaine Nakasone | Episode: "The Way You Look Tonight" |
| 1990 | Drug Wars: The Camarena Story | Thanh Steinmetz | 3 episodes |
| 1990 | Against the Law | Toy Feng | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 1991 | Thirtysomething | Willa Camden | Episode: "California" |
| 1991–92 | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Keiko O'Brien | Recurring role (8 episodes) |
| 1992 | Intruders | Dr. Jenny Sakai | 2 episodes |
| 1993–99 | Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | Keiko O'Brien | Recurring role (19 episodes) |
| 1994 | Web of Deception | Dr. Sheila Prosser | Television film |
| 1995 | Murder, She Wrote | Phoebe Campbell | Episode: "Nailed" |
| 1995 | Chicago Hope | Allison Granger | Episode: "Rise from the Dead" |
| 1995–96 | The Magic School Bus | Mrs. Li (voice) | 2 episodes |
| 1996 | To Love, Honor and Deceive | Sydney's Unnamed Friend | Television film |
| 1998 | Brimstone | Nina Chou | Episode: "Poem" |
| 1999 | Get Real | Anne Collins | Episode: "Passages" |
| 1999 | ER | Dr. Chao | Episode: "Humpty Dumpty" |
| 2000 | Family Law | Dr. Seabourne | Episode: "Going Home" |
| 2001 | Gideon's Crossing | Claire Hines | Episode: "Filaments and Ligatures" |
| 2001 | The West Wing | Jane Gentry | Episode: "The Fall's Gonna Kill You" |
| 2001 | Arliss | Karen | Episode: "As Others See Us" |
| 2001 | Three Blind Mice | Li Mei Chen | Television film |
| 2001 | Citizen Baines | Dr. Judith Lin | Recurring role (3 episodes) |
| 2001 | Once and Again | Tami Seitz | Episode: "Pictures" |
| 2002 | Dharma & Greg | Patricia | Episode: "Tuesday's Child" |
| 2002 | MDs | Angela Yuan | Episode: "R.I.P." |
| 2003–06 | The O.C. | Dr. Kim | Recurring role (6 episodes) |
| 2003 | Without a Trace | Helen Collins | Episode: "Hang on to Me" |
| 2003 | Monk | Arleen Cassidy | Episode: "Mr. Monk Goes Back to School" |
| 2003 | The Parkers | Prof. Thornhill | Episode: "Cheaters Never Prosper" |
| 2003–04 | 10-8: Officers on Duty | Lt. Maggie Chen | 4 episodes |
| 2004 | Century City | Doctor | Episode: "The Face Was Familiar" |
| 2004 | Medical Investigation | Dr. Kramer | Episode: "Price of Pleasure" |
| 2004 | Center of the Universe | Dr. Geisler | Episode: "Art's Heart" |
| 2005 | Six Feet Under | Cindy | 3 episodes |
| 2005 | According to Jim | Sally Wu | Episode: "James & the Annoying Peach" |
| 2006 | Ben 10 | Councilwoman Liang (voice) | Episode: "Side Effects" |
| 2006 | W.I.T.C.H. | Joan Lin, Mandy (voice) | Episode: "V Is for Victory" |
| 2007 | Tell Me You Love Me | Cynthia | Recurring role (3 episodes) |
| 2008 | Grey's Anatomy | Kathleen Patterson | Episode: "All By Myself" |
| 2009 | Private Practice | Lillie Jordan | Episode: "Slip Slidin' Away" |
| 2010 | CSI | Michelle Huntley | Episode: "Long Ball" |
| 2010 | Trauma | Therapist | 2 episodes |
| 2010 | The Event | Doctor | 2 episodes |
| 2011 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Mrs. Zhuang | Episode: "Cadaver" |
| 2012 | Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 | Pastor Jin | Recurring role (4 episodes) |
| 2012 | Bones | Mandy Oh | Episode: "The Suit on the Set" |
| 2014 | Intelligence | Sheng-Li wang | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2014 | Shameless | Doctor | Episode: "Strangers on a Train" |
| 2014 | The Neighbors | Barb Hartley | 2 episodes |
| 2014 | Forever | Frenchman | Episode: "The Frustrating Thing About Psychopaths" |
| 2015 | Castle | Mimi Tan | Episode: "Hong Kong Hustle" |
| 2015 | Sin City Saints | Mrs. Wu | 5 episodes |
| 2016 | The Muppets | Woman #1 | Episode: "A Tail of Two Piggies" |
| 2016 | Hawaii Five-0 | Governor Keiko Mahoe | Episode: "Makaukau 'oe e Pa'ani?" |
| 2016 | The OA | Patricia Knowler | Episode: "Champion" |
| 2017 | Black-ish | Dr. Stone | Episode: "Manternity" |
| 2017 | The Catch | Kohana Takashi | Episode: "The Dining Hall" |
| 2018 | Code Black | Jae Eun | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | This Is Us | Anna | Episode: "The Pool: Part Two " |
| 2020 | The L Word: Generation Q | Grace Lee | Episode: "Lose It All" |
| 2020–22 | Better Things | Caroline | 6 episodes |
| 2022 | The First Lady | Tina Tchen | |
| 2023–2024 | Sweet Tooth | Mrs. Zhang | Guest season 2; Main season 3 |
| 2024 | 3 Body Problem | Ye Wenjie | |

### Theatre

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2008 | Some Girl(s) | Lindsay | |
| 2018 | The Great Wave | Etsuko | National Theatre of Great Britain |

### Games

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1995 | Shanghai: Great Moments | Rosalind Chao / Guide |