Marvelous Ming by Melissa Fales
For actress Ming-Na Wen, one of the most engaging things about portraying master martial artist Melinda May on Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. for the last five years has been the need to continuously adapt to the evolution and growth of the character. “Agent May started off being very mysterious and standoffish,” she says. “Initially, she had a different agenda. But ultimately, the true nature of Agent May is that she’s extremely loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D., and she truly cares for and loves her S.H.I.E.L.D. family.” Born in Macau, Wen moved to the U.S. as a young girl. She made her television debut on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in 1985 and hasn’t stopped acting since. Among her acting achievements are a regular role on the soap As the World Turns, playing Dr. Jing-Mei Chen on the popular medical drama ER, starring in the 1993 film The Joy Luck Club, and voicing Fa Mulan in the animated film Mulan, released in 1998. Last year marked the 20th anniversary of Mulan, based on an ancient Chinese tale about a girl who pretends to be a boy in order to join the army and help to fend off the invading Huns in her father’s place. “Being involved with Mulan was an incredible thrill,” says Wen. “I grew up with the folklore of Fa Mulan. She’s the Joan of Arc of China. It’s a story I’ve loved since I was a little girl.”
Wen says she’s proud of the film’s staying power. “For Mulan to have held up 20 years later and to have such an impact on young girls, and boys, too, is something special,” she says. “It continues to have an impact. It inspires young girls to be brave and strong. It inspires boys to respect them for that. It’s even crossed over into the gay and lesbian community. It’s a wonderful honor to be a part of something that has meant so much to so many people.” Disney’s Ralph Breaks the Internet gave Wen the chance to reprise her role as the voice of Mulan. “I was thrilled to be a part of it,” she says. “I was an arcade girl. I grew up with all of those arcade characters. I went every single day with my boyfriend. We plunked down a lot of quarters.” Wen says she approaches voice-over work the same way she would approach an on-camera acting job. “For me, it’s about figuring out what the character is doing,” she says. “What is the emotional aspect behind them? How are they feeling? What are they feeling?” Sometimes, she admits she appreciates the opportunity to be hidden. “The great thing about voice-over is that you don’t have to worry about your waistline or if you’re having a bad hair day,” she says. “That’s why I do so many of them. You can work on five or six projects simultaneously and you can do the work for a few episodes in one sitting.”
