- I grew up in Jackson Heights, Queens, with no money. I was taught not to take anything for granted. If you are too busy being a diva or a freak, then you are not enjoying it.
- Everything I buy is vintage and smells funny. Maybe that's why I don't have a boyfriend.
- [on Ally McBeal (1997)] It's so much fun playing her [Ling], but I have this fear that people are going to run away from me in terror on the streets. They think I'm going to bite their heads off or something.
- I'm so proud of my heritage, but yes, I think there's always a danger when people put you on a pedestal. Especially when you're just trying to live your life and pursue your dreams. The intention is not to represent Asian Americans, but to be an Asian American who is working as an actress. People often confuse the two. When you are "representing," you have the burden of some people projecting their hopes onto you. This can eventually lead to a certain amount of disappointment. I strive to not deny myself experiences that open up to me. I hope to live without looking back in regret. If people want to join me on the ride, then I'm happy to have them along.
- Martial arts are art forms and require a great deal of discipline and dedication. I so admire people who focus their lives on it, because it's not an easy thing to do.
- Producing is like pushing jello up a hill on a hot day.
- It's really taking a while but I do think it's becoming more acceptable to cast Asians in roles that weren't originally slated for someone who is Asian, which is so great.
- I try to believe like I believed when I was five...when my heart told me everything I needed to know.
- [on playing a female version of the character "Dr. Watson" in Elementary (2012)] I think flawed characters, having a history and a mysterious past, are always going to keep the audience engaged. Naturally, the connection between the two of them [i.e. with "Sherlock Holmes"] is his oddities and, you know, his inability to be as stable as most people would like to be. She's just as unstable, but not as obvious, because she's trying to distract her own problems with his problems.
- [on dealing with so many 'dead bodies' on Elementary (2012)] You become a little jaded. We had someone posing as a dead person we find in a dumpster. She got all the prosthetics on her face to make her look dehydrated, like she's been there for a while. She's been in makeup for three hours, but she's in there eating a breakfast burrito.
- I never stopped and thought, "I want a career like this person or that person," not just because of the limitations of being Asian-American, but because of the importance of understanding that you're on your individual path, and there are different crossroads and different journeys... I don't know where mine's going to take me, but I have absolute confidence that it's the right direction.
- 'Cause you know, everyone has a tattoo, like everybody. I'm trying to be different.
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