Lucy Alexis Liu (born December 2, 1968) is an American actress, narrator, and film producer. She became known for playing the role of the vicious and ill-mannered Ling Woo in the television series Ally McBeal (1998–2002) for which she was nominated for both a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series, and has also appeared in several hit Hollywood films including Payback, Charlie's Angels, Chicago, Kill Bill, and Kung Fu Panda. In 2012, Liu joined the cast of the TNT original series Southland in the recurring role of Jessica Tang for which she won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Drama Guest Actress. She is currently one of the two series lead actors of the CBS television crime drama Elementary in the role of Joan Watson. Liu, who is an artist in several media, has had three gallery shows showcasing her collage, paintings, and photography. She began doing collage mixed media when she was 16 years old, and became a photographer and painter. In September 2006, Liu held an art show and donated her share of the profits to UNICEF. She also had another show in 2008 in Munich. Liu has stated that she donated her share of the profits to UNICEF. In 2001 Liu was the spokesman for the Lee National Denim Day fundraiser, which raises millions of dollars for breast cancer research and education. In 2005 Liu was appointed an ambassador for U.S. Fund for UNICEF. She traveled to Pakistan and Lesotho, among several other countries. She also hosted an MTV documentary, Traffic, for the MTV EXIT campaign in 2007. Liu produced Traffic to raise awareness of human trafficking in Asia. Early in 2006, Liu received an "Asian Excellence Award" for Visibility. Liu is a supporter of marriage equality for gays and lesbians, and she became a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign in 2011. She has teamed up with Heinz to combat the widespread global health threat of iron deficiency anemia and vitamin and mineral malnutrition among infants and children in the developing world.
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