Cheng Pei-pei, martial arts actor who starred in ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,’ dies at age 78
Cheng Pei-pei, a Chinese-born martial arts film actor who starred in Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” has died, her family announced Friday.
Cheng Pei-pei, a Chinese-born martial arts film actor who starred in Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” has died, her family announced Friday. She was 78.
Cheng, who had been diagnosed with a rare illness with symptoms similar to Parkinson’s disease, passed away Wednesday at home surrounded by her loved ones, her family wrote on Facebook. They said current medical treatment could not slow the progression of the disease, called neurodegenerative atypical parkinsonism syndrome, and that she had donated her brain for medical research.
“Our mom wanted to be remembered by how she was: the legendary Queen of Martial Arts ... a versatile, award-winning actress whose film and television career spanned over six decades, not only in Asia but internationally as well,” they said.
Cheng loved being an actor and knew how fortunate she was to have the career she had, they said.
The entertainment publication Variety reported that she died in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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