A delicately beautiful Chinese actress, Zhang Ziyi was born the 9th of February 1980, in Beijing, China, and is the daughter of an economist father and a kindergarten teacher. Raised with her older brother in an urban, working-class part of Beijing, Zhang was originally interested in dance and gymnastics.

Zhang Ziyi first caught the attention of filmgoers at the 2000 Berlin Film Festival with her debut performance as a young girl who falls in love with a schoolteacher in "The Road Home", director Zhang Yimou's acclaimed drama. Her strong performance (and the rumors of a romance with the director) led many Asian journalists to dub the newcomer "little Gong Li", after the director's former leading lady. Within three months, Zhang Ziyi enjoyed a further career boost when the martial arts romance "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" premiered at Cannes. Her performance as the headstrong Jen Wu, a sheltered aristocrat with a taste for adventure, anchored the movie and demonstrated her astonishing range. Whether executing the daring almost balletic martial arts fight sequences or engaging in a spirited battle of wills with the bandit who has kidnapped her (seen in a lengthy flashback), Zhang Ziyi proved irresistible.

Zhang Ziyi was enrolled in dance school in her native Beijing at a young age and won an award at a national competition at age 15. Soon after, she began appearing in TV commercials in Hong Kong. Spotted by Zhang Yimou, the young actress was offered the leading role in "The Road Home" which earned raves. She added to her rising star status with "Crouching Tiger" and then a co-starring role in Tsui Hark's sequel "Zu, Warriors from the Magic Mountain 2" (2001). Zhang Ziyi made her American debut co-starring with Chris Tuckerand Jackie Chan in "Rush Hour 2" (2001).