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| Vital Stats: |
| Katie Leung |
Full Name:
Date of Birth:
Place of Birth:
Siblings:
- Katie Liu Leung
- Katt
Date of Birth:
- 8 August 1987
Place of Birth:
- Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, Scotland
Siblings:
- 3: Two Brothers, and a younger Sister
Scottish actress Katie Leung found the key to overcoming her
shyness in an unconventional way.
Five years ago, she was living with her father, her two brothers,
and her younger sister in Battersea, South London. Her father,
Peter, who was busy balancing a successful Chinese restaurant in
Glasgow and a thriving Chinese food wholesale business, was
watching television when he came across an advertisement that
immediately reminded him of his daughter.
The commercial was for an open audition to play the character Cho
Chang in the upcoming Harry Potter movie. Author J.K. Rowling
insisted the role be given to a complete unknown.
Katie, having never even been in a school play, was as unknown as
you could get.
Katie agreed to go on the audition but without any expectations.
In fact, the line was so long when they arrived that she even
considered going shopping instead.
She decided to wait only to be interviewed for a mere five
minutes. Katie returned home that day assuming that the audition
was nothing more than an interesting experience.
Two weeks later, however, Katie received a phone call explaining
that she had beaten out 4,500 other girls to receive the role of
Cho Chang. Katie, also being fluent in Cantonese and Mandarin,
strongly believes that it was her Scottish accent that gave her
the edge.
Despite never acting a day in her life, Katie went on to film the
biggest grossing movie of the year, Harry Potter and the Goblet of
Fire.
Katie was asked to return as Cho Chang for a more in depth role in
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix the following year. It
was in this movie that she shared an on screen kiss with her Harry
Potter co-star, Daniel Radcliffe. The kiss received much media
coverage, as it was the first major kiss for the main character
and in the series.
Katie then did video game voiceover work for the video games for
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the
Half-Blood Prince. She will be reprising her role as Cho in Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
However, her character’s significance in the Harry Potter series
reached its climax in the fifth movie. Because of this, Katie
began her search to branch out into other roles.
In 2007, she appeared as the female lead in the music video Love
Coming Home for musician Leo Ku. In 2008, she guest starred in
ITV1’s Agatha Christie’s Poirot as Hsui Tai in the episode
entitled, “Cat among the Pigeons.” Her collective work earned her
the titles of Scotland’s Most Stylish Female and The Hottest
Scotswoman as decided on by The Scotsman.
Katie attended Hamilton College, Scotland’s prestigious private
school, until May of 2005. In order to film the fifth Harry Potter
film, she had to delay Art College.
She had enrolled in photography classes in the University of the
Arts London and has since expressed that if she wasn’t an actress
she would pursue a career in photography. Katie’s favorite Chinese
actors are Aaron Kwok and Stephen Chow, though her first celebrity
crush is Joaquin Phoenix.
As for the shy girl who never spoke up for herself? Being an
actress has given her the confidence to be herself. Recently, she
gave this advice to other girls wanting to pursue acting as a
career:
shyness in an unconventional way.
Five years ago, she was living with her father, her two brothers,
and her younger sister in Battersea, South London. Her father,
Peter, who was busy balancing a successful Chinese restaurant in
Glasgow and a thriving Chinese food wholesale business, was
watching television when he came across an advertisement that
immediately reminded him of his daughter.
The commercial was for an open audition to play the character Cho
Chang in the upcoming Harry Potter movie. Author J.K. Rowling
insisted the role be given to a complete unknown.
Katie, having never even been in a school play, was as unknown as
you could get.
Katie agreed to go on the audition but without any expectations.
In fact, the line was so long when they arrived that she even
considered going shopping instead.
She decided to wait only to be interviewed for a mere five
minutes. Katie returned home that day assuming that the audition
was nothing more than an interesting experience.
Two weeks later, however, Katie received a phone call explaining
that she had beaten out 4,500 other girls to receive the role of
Cho Chang. Katie, also being fluent in Cantonese and Mandarin,
strongly believes that it was her Scottish accent that gave her
the edge.
Despite never acting a day in her life, Katie went on to film the
biggest grossing movie of the year, Harry Potter and the Goblet of
Fire.
Katie was asked to return as Cho Chang for a more in depth role in
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix the following year. It
was in this movie that she shared an on screen kiss with her Harry
Potter co-star, Daniel Radcliffe. The kiss received much media
coverage, as it was the first major kiss for the main character
and in the series.
Katie then did video game voiceover work for the video games for
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the
Half-Blood Prince. She will be reprising her role as Cho in Harry
Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
However, her character’s significance in the Harry Potter series
reached its climax in the fifth movie. Because of this, Katie
began her search to branch out into other roles.
In 2007, she appeared as the female lead in the music video Love
Coming Home for musician Leo Ku. In 2008, she guest starred in
ITV1’s Agatha Christie’s Poirot as Hsui Tai in the episode
entitled, “Cat among the Pigeons.” Her collective work earned her
the titles of Scotland’s Most Stylish Female and The Hottest
Scotswoman as decided on by The Scotsman.
Katie attended Hamilton College, Scotland’s prestigious private
school, until May of 2005. In order to film the fifth Harry Potter
film, she had to delay Art College.
She had enrolled in photography classes in the University of the
Arts London and has since expressed that if she wasn’t an actress
she would pursue a career in photography. Katie’s favorite Chinese
actors are Aaron Kwok and Stephen Chow, though her first celebrity
crush is Joaquin Phoenix.
As for the shy girl who never spoke up for herself? Being an
actress has given her the confidence to be herself. Recently, she
gave this advice to other girls wanting to pursue acting as a
career:
- "When I was in my early teens, I wasn’t very
confident. In fact, before getting the part in
the film, I’d say I was shy, especially at school.
I’d never acted before, but being in front of
the camera has really brought me out of myself."
| Biography: |
| The Ultimate Harry Potter Analysis Source |
| Choosing what is Right over what is Easy |
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| Honors and Awards: |
- 2006 Outstanding Newcomer Award Nomination
- Young Scots Award
- 2007 Scotland’s Most Stylish Female
- Cosmogirl’s Hot 100 List (#80)
- 2008 MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
