Wai Ching Ho, 1943 – 2026

Chinese actress Wai Ching Ho, 82, died on July 12. Wai played Madame Gao in the Marvel comic-book movies Daredevil, Iron Fist, and The Defenders, and played one of Grandma’s gang in the wonderful series Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens. Born in Hong Kong, she made her US films debut in Cadillac Man (1990), and went on to appear in such movies as the unfortunate Soapdish, Beautiful Ohio, Children of Invention, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Tracers, Hustlers, and The World’s Greatest. On TV, she was seen in One Life to Live, New Amsterdam, Flight of the Conchords, Orange is the New Black, and Only Murders in the Building. Wai was also active onstage; Mahira Kakkar, who appeared with Wai in the National Asian American Theatre Company’s Henry VI, wrote that “She was incredible—warm, funny, caring, joyful, positive and a truly wonderful actor. She played a lead role-basically a female King Lear, and was riveting. She would say to us, ‘Eat two slices of raw ginger every day and you won’t get sick!’ For those of us who did not have a lot of role models and mentors in the industry Wai was a pillar.”