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Biography

Sandra Oh was born on July 20, 1971, in Nepean, Ontario. The daughter of Korean immigrants, Sandra took an interest in the arts at an early age and began taking ballet lessons at just four years old. By the time she was 10, Sandra made her stage debut in a play called The Canada Goose, and the budding thespian devoted much of her high school career to the pursuit of her craft. After graduation, Sandra enrolled at Montreal's prestigious National Theatre School of Canada where she spent three years learning from some of Canada's top theatrical instructors. In 1993, Sandra -- having already appeared in various television shows and obscure movies -- caught a break after beating out over 1,000 actresses for the title role in a made-for-television film called The Diary of Evelyn Lau. Sandra quickly found herself being positioned as Canada's next big thing, and even managed to land a nomination for a Gemini Award (Canada's answer to the Emmys). Sandra's next project was 1994's critically acclaimed Double Happiness, which brought the actress worldwide praise and introduced her to an entirely new audience. Sandra spent much of the mid-'90s toiling in one forgettable project after another, including a Cagney & Lacey television movie and guest appearances on shows like Kung Fu: The Legend Continues and Lonesome Dove: The Outlaw Years. In 1996, Sandra made the move to Los Angeles after landing a recurring role on the HBO program Arli$$, and it wasn't long before she began popping up in high-profile endeavors like 1997's Bean. Buoyed by the security of a steady paycheck thanks to her Arli$$ gig, Sandra felt comfortable enough to spend her off-hours pursuing projects of a distinctly low-key nature. As such, she began popping up in a succession of independent films, including three in 1998 alone: Don McKellar's end-of-the-world drama Last Night, The Red Violin opposite Samuel L. Jackson, and the Ben Stiller drug movie Permanent Midnight. Sandra's personal life was looking up as well, as it was around that time that she began dating noted filmmaker Alexander Payne (Election, About Schmidt). Though their relationship didn't last -- their two-year marriage ended in divorce in 2005 -- the couple managed to collaborate for one of the most indelible efforts of Payne's career: 2004's Sideways afforded Sandra the opportunity to play a spunky, fiercely independent character, and brought her (and the film's cast) a wealth of kudos from various critic associations. Sandra capitalized on the heat surrounding her by taking on as many projects as she could, going so far as to appear in almost two dozen films in under five years. Sandra's exceedingly busy schedule made it difficult for her to return to her stage roots, though the actress appeared in various high-profile productions, like The Vagina Monologues, in years since. Even though Sandra established herself as one of the most reliable actresses in Hollywood, she remained a relatively anonymous figure with the American public; most people recognized her, but remained clueless as to her actual identity. That all changed in 2005, when Sandra landed the coveted role of Dr. Cristina Yang on Grey's Anatomy. The show, a midseason replacement in the spring of '05, slowly but surely transformed itself into a bona fide television sensation, and Sandra (along with fellow cast mates Katherine Heigl, Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey) quickly found herself caught up in a whirlwind of media attention, especially after winning herself a best supporting actress Golden Globe award in 2006 for her role on the show.