Biography

Maggie Q

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Margaret Denise Quigley was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to a father of Polish and Irish descent (originally based in New York) and a Vietnamese mother. Her parents met during the Vietnam War. Maggie has two older half-siblings from her mother's previous marriage, and two older sisters. The family moved to Hawaii and settled in Mililani.

Maggie dreamed of becoming a veterinarian, but modeled and found herself bursting onto the Hong Kong movie scene - eventually becoming a full-fledged superstar in Asia. She changed her name to the easily pronounceable "Maggie Q" (for the Chinese audience). She had a cameo in the Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker smash hit Rush Hour 2 (2001) and is part of the supporting cast in Mission: Impossible III (2006), starring Tom Cruise.
- IMDb mini biography by: aerithyuna2004 (with C-Minor edits)

Her father, who is American-born, has Irish and Polish ancestry. Her mother is Vietnamese-born. Maggie was raised in Hawaii, and was a fashion model and television personality before she became a movie actress.
For her first several Hong Kong films, since Maggie could not actually speak Cantonese - she actually had to learn her lines phonetically. Some lines may also have been dubbed.
Although she is actually American (born and raised in Hawaii), and of half Vietnamese descent, Maggie pursued modeling careers first in Japan, then Taiwan, then Hong Kong. Her transition into acting was almost coincidental and since then she has become both a top model and actress in Hong Kong, along with garnering a certain amount of fame across Asia.
Was cast in Live Free or Die Hard (2007) without an audition.
Has training in Chinese Wushu, Qi Gong, and Wing Chun.

Not only do I not want to be stereotyped as this Asian girl who fights (gee, what a wonder), but also, I have more to offer than that.
I'm just totally into being strong. There's something about wanting to get a jar or whatever out of a high cupboard, or moving a sofa over because my dog's bone rolled under it, and not having to call anyone for help. There's comfort in that.
When you come to America, it's a very serious thing. It's not like you arrive and they say, "Hey, come on! Do movies!" I can't just be hopping around. I have to focus and be still and make sure that I put the time and effort in. Because if I don't, I could lose it like that.
My manager's biggest dream is for me to be on Letterman. She says, 'Oh, Maggie, will you promise me you'll be on 'Letterman?' What can I say? I just tell her I can't promise, but I'll try my best.
I, Maggie, personally cannot tell you that you're going to save the planet. But what I do know is that we can draw a line to an issue that can conserve what we already have and what's left in a way that we can actually breathe the air, drink the water, actually grow things in soil - that matters in a real, practical way.

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