Christine Ko (born 1988) is an American actress, known for her roles as Emma on the CBS sitcom The Great Indoors, Mandi on Upload and Emma on Dave. Before her success in America, she had a brief career in Taiwan in the early 2010s.[2]

Christine Ko
Born1988 (age 35–36)[1]
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Alma materGeorgia State University
OccupationActress
Years active2012–present
FatherFrankie Kao
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese葛曉潔
Simplified Chinese葛晓洁
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinGé Xiǎojié
Wade–GilesKo2 Hsiao3-chieh2

Early life

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Ko was born in Chicago and grew up in both Taiwan and Atlanta. She is the daughter of legendary Taiwanese entertainer Frankie Kao.[3] Ko initially pursued a career in finance before transitioning to acting.[4]

Career

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Ko has discussed the issue of limited roles for Asian American actors in the United States. Her role on The Great Indoors was originally written for a blond woman, but Ko's agent was able to get her an audition. After her audition, the producers changed their original idea of Emma's appearance. Ko said, "I think that's true diversity. You're just like everybody else. You just look Asian... It's the norm and how we all live. We just haven't seen it in Hollywood yet."[5][6]

Ko joined the cast of the television series Hawaii Five-0 part way into its eighth season.[7] She also guest-starred in the HBO comedy series Ballers.[5][6][8] She starred on the FXX series Dave alongside Dave Burd.[9]

In 2021, she starred alongside Canadian singer Justin Bieber in the music video of his song "Hold On".[10][11]

In 2022 she joined the cast of The Handmaid's Tale (TV series).[12]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role
2017 The Jade Pendant May
2018 Grandmother's Gold Mona
2019 Extracurricular Activities Amy
2020 Tigertail Angela
Blinders Sam
2024 Mabel Angela

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2012 Hollywood Heights Brenda 2 episodes
2015 Ballers Anna Episode: "Saturdaze"
2016–2017 The Great Indoors Emma Series regular
2017 Adam Ruins Everything Tiffany Episode: "Adam Ruins the Hospital"
2018 Hawaii Five-0 Jessie Nomura Recurring role; 6 episodes
Deception Vivian Song Episode: "Divination"
2019 No Good Nick Ms. Chang 2 episodes
2020 Stumptown Cameron Dorsey Episode: "All Quiet On The Dextern Front"
2020–2023 Dave Emma Series regular
2020 Upload Mandi Recurring role
2021 Master of None Ashley 1 episode
Sweet Pecan Summer Amanda Hallmark Channel
Just Beyond Ms. Fausse Episode: "Unfiltered"
2022 Only Murders in the Building Nina Lin Recurring role
The Handmaid's Tale Lily

Personal life

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Ko is engaged to Parks & Recreation writer and producer Alan Yang.[13][14]

References

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  1. ^ Reynolds, Maggie (2021-09-29). "Christine Ko on Mastering the Art of Deadpan and Lil Dicky's Nickname for Her". Men's Journal. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  2. ^ 《家有4千金》葛曉潔戲劇處女秀 低胸性感迎寒流 高凌風探班餵湯圓過冬至. Taiwan Television (in Chinese). 2010-12-23. Archived from the original on 2011-01-02.
  3. ^ "高凌風在天上笑了 女兒葛曉潔主演美劇 | 即時新聞 | 20161026 | 蘋果日報". 蘋果日報 (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Retrieved 2017-03-05.
  4. ^ "'Tigertail' Star Christine Ko Went From Finance to Acting + Never Looked Back". Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  5. ^ a b "Christine Ko as Emma". CBS. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  6. ^ a b "'You Get One Shot': Actress Christine Ko Is Ready For Her Network TV Close-Up". NBC News. 24 October 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  7. ^ "We are very excited to welcome Christine Ko to our ohana! She'll make her Hawaii Five-0 debut on January 19!". CBS. 4 January 2018. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
  8. ^ "The Great Indoors Star Christine Ko Shares Her Haute LA Secrets". Haute Living. 27 October 2016. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  9. ^ Dave, retrieved 2020-03-04
  10. ^ Everington, Keoni (2021-03-16). "Taiwanese-American actress stars in Justin Bieber video". Taiwan News. Retrieved August 5, 2022.
  11. ^ Shaffer, Claire; Legapsi, Althea (2021-03-05). "Justin Bieber Robs Bank to Save Partner in New 'Hold On' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 5, 2022.
  12. ^ Porter, Rick (2022-04-05). "'The Handmaid's Tale' Adds Christine Ko for Season 5 (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  13. ^ "Christine Ko on Instagram: "12. 19. 22"". Instagram. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  14. ^ Zhang, Qundong (2022-12-28). "高凌风爱女点头嫁了! 葛晓洁秀无名指钻戒甜蜜拥吻帅导演". China Times. Retrieved August 21, 2023.
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