Gemma Chan biography, height, boyfriend, parents, dating history, age 2025

Biography of Gemma Chan

Gemma Chan is a dynamic and captivating British actress of Asian heritage. Her drive and determination have propelled her to stardom in Hollywood blockbusters. Her films regularly dominate the box office and captivate both audiences and critics.

Childhood and Youth

Born in London, Gemma grew up in Sevenoaks, Kent. Her mother moved from China to London with her parents as a child and later worked as a pharmacist at Guy's Hospital. Her father emigrated from Hong Kong as an adult and worked as a chartered engineer.

Growing up, Gemma was a focused and dedicated student who learned violin and piano at a local music studio. She also trained seriously in swimming and ballet. She attended the prestigious Newstead Wood School for Girls, where she was considered one of the top students.

After finishing secondary school, she went on to Worcester College at Oxford University, where she studied international law and jurisprudence. After a successful internship at the prestigious law firm Slaughter and May, she made the surprising decision to pursue acting instead.

The decision shocked her parents, who understood firsthand the challenges immigrant families face in achieving success. Her father didn't speak to her for three months! But Gemma stuck to her decision, moved to London, and enrolled in drama school.

Modeling Business

To pay for her education, she started working part-time as a model and quickly found success in the field. Her striking looks caught the attention of top fashion brand managers, who started offering her lucrative contracts. Soon she was promoting products for globally renowned brands like Nivea, Nokia, and Reebok, walking in Valentino fashion shows, and gracing the covers of prestigious magazines. Building on this success, she appeared on television and became one of the top three finalists on the British version of the reality show "Runway."

During her studies, Gemma Chan became a model

But Gemma's rapid success in modeling didn't deter her from her chosen path. She kept her sights on acting, and in 2008, after graduating from Drama Centre London, she joined one of London's leading theaters. Her portfolio includes many memorable theatrical roles on prestigious London stages, but she gained widespread recognition through her television work.

Gemma Chan in a Bing commercial

Acting Career

She first appeared on screen in the teen thriller "When Evil Calls" (2006), where she played a small episodic role. This was followed by roles in "Doctor Who" (2009), "The Exam" (2009), and many others, which became her first steps toward global fame. In 2010, Gemma appeared in the iconic series "Sherlock" and also took part in the filming of the fourth season of the sitcom "The IT Crowd".

Her role in the spy thriller "Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit" (2014) didn't go unnoticed, where she starred alongside Kevin Costner and Keira Knightley. After the film's release, producers of the series "Humans" took notice of Chan and cast her as the synthetic robot Anita.

Humans - Life with a Robot

Gemma worked hard on her facial expressions, gestures, and movements to convincingly portray an artificial intelligence and seamlessly inhabit such an unusual character. The series attracted a multimillion-strong audience and was renewed for two more seasons, bringing Chan long-awaited fame and worldwide recognition.

Gemma Chan on Captain Marvel, Robots & Crazy Rich Asians

From that point on, she no longer had to take the first job that came her way and became more selective about her projects. In 2016, she appeared in the big-screen adaptation of J.K. Rowling's bestseller "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" as Madam Ya Zhou and voiced Quintessa, a powerful being who created the Knights of Cybertron, in the iconic "Transformers".

Gemma Chan in the movie 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'

The year 2018 marked a real breakthrough in the actress's professional career. She starred in four major projects, each of which became an event in the world of cinema. Gemma played the leading role in the comedy "Crazy Rich Asians," made a striking appearance in the thriller "London Fields," performed the role of Elizabeth I's lady-in-waiting in the historical drama "Mary Queen of Scots," and transformed into the villain Minn-Erva in the superhero action movie "Captain Marvel".

A shot from the movie 'Crazy Rich Asians'

Meanwhile, she makes time for social activism, championing women's rights in the fight against workplace sexual harassment and visiting global hotspots on volunteer missions.

Gemma Chan as Minn-Erva in the movie 'Captain Marvel'

At the end of 2020, Gemma could be seen in the feature-length comedy "Let Them All Talk" by Steven Soderbergh, alongside Meryl Streep, Candice Bergen, and Dianne Wiest. Streep plays the main role – an elderly writer who travels on a liner from the US to Britain, while Gemma played her literary agent. According to the actress, almost all the dialogues in the film were pure improvisation.

Gemma Chan in the movie 'Let Them All Talk'

Chan landed one of the main roles in Marvel's blockbuster "Eternals." Her character Sersi is a member of the Eternals, the most powerful beings in the universe. But she's the only one among her peers who truly connects with humanity and embraces human civilization.

When discussing her character, Chan emphasized this quality above all:

...Sersi is not your typical superheroine: she's not the best fighter, she doesn't have impressive abilities. What's important about her is that she's an empath. She has a connection with people, the world, and the Earth. That's her strength.

Gemma also appeared in the thriller "Don't Worry Darling" by Olivia Wilde and in the miniseries "Extrapolations," an anthology about the near future and climate change.

Gemma Chan and Kit Harington at the premiere of 'Extrapolations'

Gemma Chan's Personal Life

Despite a successful professional career and a busy work schedule, Gemma makes time for her personal life as well. She dated her "Fresh Meat" co-star Jack Whitehall from 2011, after meeting him on set. The couple split by the end of 2017, and Chan moved back to her London apartment.

Chan didn't stay single for long – six months later, she began dating actor Dominic Cooper, star of "Preacher." The couple openly attends events together and doesn't hide their relationship.

Gemma Chan Now

In 2023, Chan voiced Natsuko in the English dub of Hayao Miyazaki's animated masterpiece "The Boy and the Bird." She guest-starred in the second season of Apple TV's "Afterparty" and played the lead alongside Ken Watanabe and John David Washington in sci-fi thriller "The Creator."

She was also filming Duke Johnson's detective drama "The Actor." She was joined by Andre Holland, who played Paul Cole, an actor from New York who, due to amnesia, found himself stuck in a small American town in the 1950s.

Mary Lamb

I wish great creative success to Chan. Let her have more interesting roles

2021-05-12 12:42:59
Billie Fields

Damn, I was impressed by the series «Humans». The plot is generally non-trivial, it was cool :)

2021-05-08 14:56:09
Harold Owen

Unrealistically attractive girl Gemma Chan. I can`t take my eyes off her photo!

2021-04-25 21:30:55
Leo Grant

I watched the TV series «Sherlock», in itself it is cool and Gemma Chan was a decoration in it!

2021-03-30 11:51:51
Wanda Paul

It feels like I saw Chan in some ad... A very familiar face

2021-03-16 14:01:15