Biography of Maggie Q
Born to an American father and a Vietnamese mother, Maggie Denise Quigley was born on May 22, 1979, and she was raised among the palm trees and golden sand of Honolulu, Hawaii. Her destiny, however, awaited beyond her picturesque island home, and at the age of 18 she moved to Hong Kong to pursue a career in modeling.
Maggie Q's unique look made her a popular attraction, and before long she was gracing the covers of major publications. She was offered her first big-screen role in 1999's The Legendary Tai Fei. There was just one problem: She didn't actually speak Cantonese, meaning Maggie had to learn all of her lines phonetically.
maggie q in gen-y cops
Additional roles -- and plenty of voice coaching -- followed in 2000 with the immensely popular Gen-Y Cops, an action film produced by Jackie Chan. Chan was so impressed with Maggie's acting that he had her cast in Manhattan Midnight (2001), and included her in his own film, Rush Hour 2 (2001). She teamed up with Chan again in 2004 for Around the World in 80 Days and also starred opposite Tom Cruise in the highly anticipated Mission: Impossible III (2006). In 2007, Maggie Q had several roles in American movies, including Live Free or Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis, Balls of Fury and The Tourist.
Maggie Q continued to build her resume in the U.S. in 2008 when she was cast in Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon.
