Hong Chau

Hong Chau is an American actress who is most known for her performance in the 2022 film "The Whale," for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and other supporting-actress awards. Her breakthrough role was in the 2017 film "Downsizing," for which she was nominated for several supporting-actress awards. Variety wrote in 2022 that Chau had "been prolific in recent years" and that she had "an acclaimed turn" in the TV series "Watchmen" (2019) and "Homecoming" (2018–2020).

Before "Downsizing," she appeared in the TV series "Treme" (2010–2013) and the film "Inherent Vice" (2014). In 2018, she had guest star roles in several TV series. In 2019, she played a supporting role in the limited series "Watchmen," and had leading roles in the films "American Woman" and "Driveways." In 2020, she had a starring role in the second season of the TV series "Homecoming," having had a supporting role in its first season in 2018. In 2022, she appeared in supporting roles in the films "Showing Up," "The Menu," and "The Whale."

Chau was born to Vietnamese parents who lived in a refugee camp in Thailand after fleeing Vietnam in the late 1970s. A Vietnamese Catholic church in New Orleans, Louisiana sponsored Chau and her family to move to the United States. She grew up in New Orleans and majored in film studies at Boston University College of Communication before pursuing an acting career.