English 英 : Deborah Lau-Yu | Chinese 中 : Ophelie C

VENUE: P.C. Ho Theatre, Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Toronto | ART DIRECTION: Deborah Lau-Yu | PHOTOGRAPHER: Natasha Gerschon | PHOTOGRAPY ASSISTANT: Alyssa Minten | VIDEOGRAPHER: Karl Man, Eyespie Productions | VIDEOGRAPHY ASSISTANT: Emily Zhang | FASHION DIRECTION: Ashley Galang | FASHION ASSISTANT: Vai Yu Law | MAKEUP & HAIR: Veronica Chu | ATTIRE: Alexander McQueen, Chloé, Gucci, Michael Kors, RVNG, Simone Rocha at Hudson's Bay | JEWELLRY: Alexander McQueen, Chloé, David Yurman, Messika, Tiffany & Co., Van Cleef & Arpels | FOOTWEAR: Christian Louboutin, Roger Vivier

‘Meng’ is the Chinese word for ‘dream’ and ‘Er’ means ‘child.’ Meng’er Zhang’s Chinese name could be seen as a self-fulfilling prophecy, for this Hollywood star has already realized so much of what most can only dream of. With a playful childlikeness and lack of pretension that melts the hearts of everyone she meets, Meng’er claims that she is still able to walk down the street without people recognizing her. Especially when compared to some of her recent Shang-Chi co-stars including Simu Liu, Awkwafina and Tony Leung. Meng'er revels in being more anonymous. "I like my normal life. It's just so far away from the character in the movie. Nobody will even think it's me. And that's the great part, because I like – actually, I love – watching people, absorbing people. It's kind of my actor's habit."

A dream is often comprised of two parts: The Known, which reveals the heart's deepest desires, and The Unknown, representing unchartered territory in the future. The inherent symbolism of her name, combined with having something to work towards is how she's always approached her profession and, ultimately, fulfill her destiny.

漫威首部華人超級英雄電影《尚氣與十環幫傳奇》，受到漫威迷的熱烈迴響，出乎意料，在電影上映首天短短數小時內，《尚氣》妹妹徐夏靈一角立刻登上了各大搜尋引擎的熱門關鍵字。這女角亮麗、瀟灑的演技成功擄獲影迷目光，其中有一幕更令筆者留下深刻印象：徐夏靈在戰鬥期間發現神龍遇險，冷靜看清形勢後精準出鏢為牠解困，神龍從此對她另眼相看；那一剎她的眼神流露無限自信和盤算，埋下後來她騎龍助陣的伏線。觀眾最期待的片末彩蛋更見她扭轉幫會重男輕女的傳統，接管了父親的十環幫……

Originally a stage performer, she starred in dramatic and musical productions in Nanjing (where she grew up) and in Shanghai. After graduating from the Nanjing University of the Arts, and establishing her career as a theatre actor, she could have just settled in and been comfortable with the success she had already achieved. But something was tugging at her heart, telling her to dive deeper into her craft; to keep learning. She enrolled in the East 15 Acting School in London, England, where she obtained her second Masters Degree in stage performance. It was after her time in England that she saw a casting call on a WeChat group chat that merely asked for a woman who spoke both English and Mandarin. Little did she know at the time that it would end up being a life-changing opportunity for any aspiring actor: a spot in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, starring alongside some of the greatest talents from around the world.

They say that luck favours those who are prepared, and whether or not luck played a part in Meng’er Zhang’s casting as Xu Xialing in the 2021 Marvel film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, it certainly feels like the moment fits right into this dream. Her dream. "I believe that for an actor to successfully play a character, you must have a side of the character in you as a person," referring to the strong connection she felt with the persona she played on screen. At a deeper level, while she isn't completely like Xialing, there is a part of her that is, especially the streak of stubbornness that says, "don't let go." There's a part in the movie when her character Xialing tells her brother Shang-Chi how she had to teach herself how to fight since she wasn’t taught the same skills from their father, simply because she was a girl. This glimpse of strong, heroic feminism is a trait she shares with her character.

這一幕，原來在虛擬影棚拍攝，當時現場沒有威武的神龍，也沒有旁邊的混戰。飾演徐夏靈的張夢兒(Meng’er)卻仍能憑想像和精湛演技完全代入角色，僅用一個眼神，就把如此複雜的情感演繹得淋漓盡致，大概因為現實的她也是一個勇於擁抱未知的挑戰、時刻準備好把握機會的女生——Meng’er早年毅然放下中國舞台劇界的成就遠赴英國進修，促使她如今在北美荷里活電影圈闖出一片天，更找到自己的甜蜜歸宿，目前在加拿大多倫多定居。無論是電影中的徐夏靈，還是現實中的張夢兒，都堪稱女生的典範。

Ever since the release of the movie, rumours of Marvel building a world around Xialing have been rampant. While this is officially an ‘unknown,’ when asked about how she would feel about the possibility, Meng'er's voice turns about as serious as this light-hearted artist can get: "I want her to have her own story because she's such an amazing woman who has so many layers and depth. There is still much for people to discover and she has qualities so many young women can relate to. I think no matter what happens, Xialing will have a very strong return."

In the meantime, Meng’er is moving onto her next project in one of the most beloved original series on Netflix: The Witcher. In the third season of the dramatic series, she will play Milva, a fierce and talented hunter with great archery skills and – not surprisingly – a fighting spirit. She will be able to apply some of the combat skills she developed while training for Shang-Chi, which was how she met and fell in love with her now-husband Yung Lee, an action designer who taught her how to fight and throw some convincing (and physically painful) punches. After a small, simple ceremony, the couple was surprised by a celebration the next day at Disneyland, organized by Simu Liu. The day after that, co-star Awkwafina booked a venue where the cast and crew sang karaoke until they lost their voices. The couple has since made Toronto, Canada their home.

忠於自己 無畏無懼

「我們都能夠堅守自己陣地，為自己發聲。」Meng’er這樣評價自己與角色相似之處，她本人的勇氣和堅毅也實在配得上電影中的俠女角色，徐夏靈一頭自然黑髮的造型，也是Meng’er向劇組爭取擺脫荷里活亞裔俠女刻板染髮印象的成果。人在他邦仍堅持忠於自己，她的勇氣或者來自滿滿的人生閱歷。其實她在中國舞台劇界和樂壇早已闖出名堂，卻在事業如日方中之際放下一切，隻身前赴倫敦攻讀第二個碩士學位。當時朋友都質疑她的決定，但仍無畏無懼，她解釋：「雖然在舞台上累積很多經驗，但我需要多學一些新鮮的事情。正因為已工作一段時間，你清楚自己欠缺甚麼，有甚麼東西需要加強訓練。」

Meng’er這份對演藝造詣的不懈追求，讓她鼓起勇氣離開熟悉的劇院舞台重回校園，今年35歲的她「人生花了一半時間在學校」，但她就是有自信不疾不徐地打穩根基。她一臉認真地說：「不用着急，隨心而行，做好自己覺得有需要做好的事，不要跟別人比較。因為只有你最了解自己，清晰地知道自己需要甚麼和自己的目標。」

Meng’er and Yung’s professions bear uncanny similarities to those of her parents: her mother is a stage actor and her father a set designer. This naturally allowed for a lot of creative flow growing up, which little Meng'er loved as a child. "I get the acting part from my mom and I get the aesthetic part from my dad," the actor recalls as she described her childhood when theatre rehearsal holes were her playground. Now as a grown adult, she shares a similar advantage to what her mother had, where an off-screen partner who works on set is able to support, offer recommendations and lovingly critique – ultimately nourishing her performances. And she also enjoys receiving her mother's handwritten notes and feedback on her performances, with an objective mindset.

裝備好自己 慢慢擴大舒適圈

遠赴外地發展始終需要重新適應新環境，前路也充滿未知，不免承受很多壓力和迷茫吧？Meng’er用自身經驗勸勉正在追夢的年輕人，她說最重要是裝備好自己：「你只要專注改進自己的演技，不要被其他事情例如名氣、如何變得更漂亮等東西干擾。用心把自己的事情做好了，就隨便它後面要來甚麼，反正你都準備好了。對嗎？所謂『車到山前必有路』，當你邁向目標時遇上一座山（難關），也總有路可以繼續走。你或者可以攀過那座山，又或可以繞過去，甚至挖一條隧道，無論如何，總會有辦法走過去的。所以，就相信自己，尋找屬於你自己的路，總之一定可以走過去的。」

機會永遠只留給有準備的人。Meng’er坦言，要不是出國進修，要不是加入了一個國際演員的群組，也不會獲得漫威電影的試鏡機會，更遑論成為電影的女角。「永遠沒有浪費時間這回事。相信自己的直覺，想讀書就讀，它總會帶領你得到些甚麼。」她侃侃而談自己的舒適區哲學：「不是說要跳出舒適區，因為跳離的感覺有點嚇人，所以是慢慢擴大舒適區，這樣會感覺安心一點吧！好好準備的同時，但也必須明白你真的沒法完完全全準備好一切，總有些突如其來的事情會發生。所以不要期望太高，對我來說，我也真的對名氣之類沒太多追捧，我只是十分享受做好我的工作，從中找到很多樂趣。」

She laughs when recalling the scene in Shang-Chi where she returns home for the first time in years to discover her childhood bedroom untouched and has to produce a very emotional reaction. She had the scene prepared in her mind and when she walked on set, she was determined to take it in — “The bedroom, has anything changed? I imagined the posters on the wall, my pen, my dolls, my bed…” And when the director called “action,” she began. After a short while, she heard, “cut!” “Meng’er, everything you did was great, you’re really taking it all in. But we have a very small problem: you were not in the frame for a good thirty seconds. You were not on camera.” She had walked outside of the camera frame by accident because she had no concept of the camera! As a theatre actor, the moment you walk on stage, everyone sees what you do, but as a movie actor, you have to be inside the camera frame. Director Destin Daniel Cretton would continue to coach her, reminding her that she didn’t need to fill the stage like in theatre, and instead, to use subtle moments and her eyes to guide her, as every movement would be captured.

Michael Kors Collection Cut Out Embroidered Gown | Van Cleef & Arpels “Snowflake” Earrings featuring Diamonds set in 18K White Gold and Platinum | Roger Vivier Cube Strass Sandals in Black Satin

自信是……勇敢做自己也勇敢去愛

「當你真的充滿熱誠，當你真的很愛很愛它，我覺得那就沒有任何東西可以阻止你了。事實上永遠都是一個未知過後，又會有另一個未知……」說到此時，Meng’er把因這齣電影而結識、擔任武術指導的丈夫Yung Lee牽到鏡頭前，甜絲絲續說：「只要我能牽着我丈夫的手，我知道他永遠都會伴我同行，我覺得就已經足夠了。」這一幕，實在甜蜜得令在場每一個人都融化。很驚訝嗎？沒有，誰說堅毅的女生不可以小鳥依人？就是有自信，所以不需要時刻裝強。

The unknown to Meng'er is an opportunity to learn new things. "Be prepared, but of course you can't really be prepared for everything because some things will just happen. Just try not to have expectations." She loves what she does and gets joy from working with different people; it allows her to constantly learn new things. And although it comes out very naturally on screen, acting in English is something recent and she is taking classes to help develop her use of the language. She still thinks and processes in Mandarin. When asked what she credits as a key pillar in her approach to her craft, she replies, “As long as one is prepared and not overthinking too much, the moment will come.”

大家看電影會以為Meng’er像徐夏靈一樣冷傲吧！原來那不過是她出色的演技。跟她訪談實在深深感受到她的真誠友善，她有信心表露真真正正的自己，沒有塑造形象的機心，還給你很多意想不到的驚喜。她會拿出色彩繽紛的日記分享自己拍攝期間的所思所想，更挨着丈夫分享劇場趣事，一臉羞答答地說：「記得電影中那個玻璃擂台嗎？在拍攝之間的小休，我總是忍不住走近他，拍拍他的屁股。每次我們其實知道其他演員會在下面看到的，但就是忍不住。當你很愛很愛一個人，真的很難掩飾啊！」勇敢做自己，也勇敢去愛，這不更是女生的榜樣嗎？

As a contemporary artist, living and working in a time that is hyper competitive, Meng’er reminds us not to be distracted by social media and its obsession with beauty and image. For her, it’s not about looking pretty; her focus is on crafting her performances and working on herself as a person. That was why she paused her original path to continue her studies. Going back to school reminded her of why she loves acting so much. “After working for a while, you have a clearer view of yourself and what you need more of.” She encourages everyone to step out of their comfort zone, to be able to truly work on oneself, for it is only by stepping into the unknown that we can grow.

This is how she intends to keep approaching her career and, in the near future, it might not be out of the question for the world to see Meng’er re-engage another part of her passion for performing: singing. It is something she misses and wants to pursue. As always, she will keep an open mind to these doors into the unknown and be prepared should the moment present itself. And of course she will do this in her own goofy, unique and lovable way.

懂得愛 自然懂得關懷

​​訪問在筆者時區凌晨四時開始。要不是訪問對象是Meng’er，真不願意半夜爬起床訪問。但她是在訪問開始時才知道我們有時差，沒料她一直記掛，道別時竟面帶歉意對筆者說：「你快回去多睡一會兒吧！」那一刻，真的感動到心底處，她就是這樣窩心的人。訪問完成後筆者的確倒頭大睡，醒來時感覺很夢幻。「昨夜我完成訪問了嗎？」一幕幕溫馨甜蜜的畫面美好得不像現實，字字珠璣的交流充滿能量，就像做了一個很美很充實的夢。謝謝你，夢兒！

RELATED ARTICLES