Elaine Tan
Elaine Tan | |
|---|---|
| Born | London, England |
| Education | Sylvia Young Theatre School |
| Alma mater | University of Exeter |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1988–present |
| Known for | Starter for 10 |
Elaine Tan is an English actress.
Early life
Tan trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School[1] before graduating from the University of Exeter with a degree in Law and completing the Legal Practice Certificate with Distinction.[2]
Career
In 2001, Tan was cast in the lead role of Liat by Trevor Nunn in his production of South Pacific at the Royal National Theatre,[3] and sang the song "Happy Talk" as a duet with the character of Bloody Mary, which features on the musical soundtrack recorded at Abbey Road Studios.[4]
In 2006, she was nominated for Best Actress at the ECU European Independent Film Festival.[5]
Her television credits include Nighty Night, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, EastEnders,[6] 'Til Death, Boston Legal, Entourage, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Hawaii Five-0[7] and Doctor Who.[8] She played Kelli Lin in Person of Interest, was Anne in Hand of God for Amazon, and 'Angeline Borgen' in the Norwegian crime drama Frikjent.
Tan played Lucy Chang in the HBO feature film Starter for 10, Sala Khan in the film Jewtopia, April in Gina Prince-Bythewood's Beyond the Lights, Xandra in Paul Thomas Anderson's Inherent Vice, and Elyse in Tully.[9]
In 2023, Tan joined the cast of The Lazarus Project in the role of Zhang.[10] In 2025, she joined the cast of Virdee as Rebecca Armitage.[11]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Infantile Disorders | Tiny |
| 2002 | 420 Seconds of Love | Holly |
| 2003 | Out for a kill | Luo Yi |
| 2006 | Apartment 406 | Angela Proctor |
| 2006 | Starter for 10 | Lucy Chang |
| 2009 | 31 North 62 East | Mai Li |
| 2012 | Departure Date | Gorgeous Girl |
| 2012 | Mission Chinese | Antu |
| 2014 | Beyond the Lights | April |
| 2014 | Inherent Vice | Xandra |
| 2018 | Tully | Elyse |
| 2022 | The Hyperions | Maya |
Television
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Playbus | Unknown |
| 1990 | Alfonso Bonzo | Second Kid |
| 1992 | Uncle Jack | Yasmin |
| 2001 | Risk | Kim |
| 2002–2003 | Harry and Cosh | Stacey |
| 2003 | Trust | Jazz singer |
| 2004 | EastEnders | Receptionist |
| 2004 | Nighty Night | Gina |
| 2004 | Footballers' Wives | Candy |
| 2004 | Auf Wiedersehen, Pet | Waitress |
| 2006 | The Bill | Shona Dickins |
| 2006 | Hollyoaks: In the City | Gucci |
| 2006–2007 | EastEnders | Li Chong[12] |
| 2008 | Boston Legal | Lisa[13] |
| 2009 | 'Til Death | Julie |
| 2010 | Fake It til You Make It | Leela |
| 2011 | Entourage | Tammy |
| 2011 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Shizu Yoshi |
| 2012 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Miss Lotus |
| 2014 | Person of Interest | Kelli |
| 2014 | Hawaii Five-0 | Zi Chen |
| 2014 | Hand of God | Anne |
| 2015–2016 | Frikjent | Angeline Borgen[14] |
| 2015 | Doctor Who | Nagata[15] |
| 2015 | Grandfathered | Heidi |
| 2019 | Love, Death & Robots | Yan (voice)[16] |
| 2020 | Get Even | Coach Evans[17] |
| 2022 | Moonhaven (TV series) | Lone[18] |
| 2022–2023 | The Lazarus Project | Zhang[19] |
| 2024 | Red Eye | Shen[20] |
| 2025 | Virdee | Rebecca Armitage |
References
- ^ "Elaine Tan joins Sue Terry Voices!".
- ^ "Articles | Cornwall Campuses | University of Exeter".
- ^ Wolf, Matt (13 December 2001). "South Pacific". Variety. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
- ^ "South Pacific - 2002 National Theatre Record - Rodgers & Hammerstein". 18 November 2020.
- ^ "Elaine Tan at Gilty Couture / Golden Globes Lounge". 11 January 2008.
- ^ "'In the City' actress joins 'EastEnders'". Digital Spy. 20 October 2006.
- ^ "Hawaii Five-0 – Hoku Welowelo". 10 March 2014.
- ^ "Series 9: Everything You Need To Know". BBC. 8 July 2015.
- ^ "Tully: New Trailer For Jason Reitman And Charlize Theron's Latest". Empire. 3 July 2018.
- ^ "Meet the cast of The Lazarus Project season 2". Radio Times.
- ^ "Virdee Cast: Meet the Bradford Crime Drama Characters". 17 February 2025.
- ^ "Li Chong". 2 November 2024.
- ^ https://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item?q=all&p=487&item=101860
- ^ Meloni, Christine Foster (3 April 2019). "Acquitted keeps you in suspense - the Norwegian American". The Norwegian American.
- ^ "BBC One - Doctor Who (2005–2022), Series 9, Sleep No More, Elaine Tan on escaping the Sandmen". 8 March 2016.
- ^ "Love, Death & Robots: Good Hunting - Recap, Review (With Spoilers)". 4 April 2019.
- ^ "Get Even".
- ^ "Meet Elaine Tan, British-Chinese Actress on 'Moonhaven' as Lone". 25 July 2022.
- ^ ""The Lazarus Project, Season 2" Episode 2, where love may break from repeats". 17 June 2024.
- ^ "Red Eye ending explained: Who is behind the murders? | Radio Times".
External links
- Elaine Tan at IMDb