Birth Name: Kelly Marie Tran
Nickname/Stage Name: Kelly Marie Tran
Birth Date: January 17, 1989
Genres: Animation, Sci-fi
Occupation: Actress
Years Active: 2011 till Present
Net Worth: $3 million
Latest Film: Raya and the Last Dragon
Personal Life
Kelly Marie Tran was born in San Diego, California. Her parents were refugees from Vietnam who fled the country in the wake of the Vietnam War.
She was the object of racist and misogynistic attacks after the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in 2017. Her ethnicity and weight were the subjects of the insults.
She is currently single although there were rumours of her being romantically linked to actor Will Poulter in 2019.
Education
Tran attended Westview High School, San Diego, and graduated from UCLA with a degree in Communications.
Career
She started her career with CollegeHumor videos and appeared in minor TV roles. She starred in the web series Ladies Like Us in 2013, and also worked as an assistant at a creative recruiting firm.
In 2015, she was given the role of Rose Tico in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, making her the first Asian-American woman to have a major role in a Star Wars movie.
She became the first Asian woman to make an appearance on the cover of Vanity Fair in 2017. She appeared alongside her Star Wars co-stars John Boyega and Oscar Isaac.
Tran voiced the eponymous character in the 2021 Disney animated film Raya and the Last Dragon. It received largely positive reviews.
Quotes
“Growing up, I always I was from two different worlds.”
“So much of me is because of the things my parents overcame so that I could have the luxury of having a dream.”
“I’m so proud of being a Vietnamese-American.”
Trivia
Was formerly part of a musical improvisational group.
She hid the fact that she was filming Star Wars: The Last Jedi from her parents.
Was considered for the role of Kayla in Tom and Jerry (2021)
Movies
The Cohasset Snuff Film (2012)
XOXO (2016)
Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
The Croods: A New Age (2020)
Raya and the Last Dragon (2021)