Benedict Wong Biography

BENEDICT WONG

Date of Birth: February 20, 1970

Benedict Wong is a British film and television actor best known for his appearances in Prometheus (2012), The Martian (2015), and Doctor Strange (2016), as well as his portrayal of Kublai Khan on the Netflix series Marco Polo.

Benedict was born in Eccles, Greater Manchester to parents originally from Hong Kong. He was raised in the Salforg area of Manchester and studied performing arts at Salforg City College. After college, Benedict struggled to find work, and often found himself sidelined at auditions. He didn't earn his first role until he was 22, in the TV series Screenplay. In 1993, he landed his next job in a BBC radio play called Kai Mei Sauce, followed by a guest role on the series Last of the Summer Wine.

After several years of small parts in various television series and movies, he earned his breakout role as Frankie Li in the TV movie Supply & Demand (1997), which he then reprised in the mini-series reboot, again titled Supply & Demand. He also landed a recurring role on the long-running ITV series The Bill. During his time on The Bill, Benedict made his feature film debut in the crime thriller Spy Game (2001), starring Robert Redford and Brad Pitt.

The following year, he co-starred alongside Sean Lock on the short-lived BBC sitcom 15 Storeys High, which has since earned an impressive cult following among comedy fans. He then earned a part in the crime thriller Dirty Pretty Things, starring Audrey Tautou. For his role as Guo Yi, he was nominated for a British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Benedict continued appearing in both television and film over the next few years, most notably in the sci-fi thriller Sunshine (2007) alongside Cillian Murphy and Rose Byrne, the comedy Grow Your Own (2007), and the sci-fi mystery Moon (2009) starring Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey.

Benedict's next big role came in Ridley Scott's 2012 sci-fi drama Prometheus, which marked his first real taste of Hollywood blockbuster success. However, it wasn't until 2014 that he would finally begin to earn the recognition he'd long been searching for. First, he was cast as Kublai Khan — venerated war general, Fifth Khagan of the Mongol Empire, and founder of China's Yuan Dynasty — on the massively popular Netflix series Marco Polo, a role that garnered him a lot of buzz among television fans. He then landed a supporting role alongside Matt Damon in the Oscar-nominated space drama The Martian (2015).

Lastly, in 2016, Benedict earned a supporting role playing Wong in Marvel's box office smash Doctor Strange (2016). In an interview with Slash Film, Benedict said this version of the character is very different from the original comic books, where he is depicted as Strange's valet. "Wong is in our world now as a master at Kamar-Taj, training the fellow disciples and sorcerers, and [he’s a] protector of the Sanctum relics and these ancient ritual books," he said. "It's where we’ll see Wong and Doctor Strange come together and become, really, allies to fight against these extra-dimensional forces."

Benedict reprised his role as Wong in Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: End Game (2019). He'll next be seen in Gemini Man (2019), alongside Will Smith.

Filmography:

Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Doctor Strange (2016)
The Martian (2015)
Kick-Ass 2 (2013)
Redemption (2013)
Prometheus (2012)
Johnny English Reborn (2011)
The Lady (2011)
The Flying Machine(2011)
Better Life (2010)
Shanghai (2010)
Moon (2009)
The Heir Apparent: Largo Winch (2008)
Grow Your Own (2007)
Sunshine (2007)
Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story (2005)
On a Clear Day (2005)
Code 46 (2003)
Dirty Pretty Things (2002)
Spy Game (2001)