Orphaned girl from Can Tho plays in blockbuster X-Men
Lana Condor (real name: Tran Dong Lan) is the daughter of journalist Bob Condor and his wife of the newspaper.Chicago Tribune,America.Born in Can Tho, she and another boy followed their adoptive parents to live in the US when they were young.
The American journalist said that when he arrived at the Can Tho orphanage, he met hundreds of children and found them all pretty and cute. After a moment of being overwhelmed, he stepped outside and went to another room. In a quiet room where the children were sleeping, a baby made a small noise that caught his attention: "I walked over and picked the baby up. I knew I was looking at my future daughter." After that, the journalist adopted Dong Lan and named her Lana Condor.
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Tran Dong Lan, also known as Lana Condor, with her American parents and younger brother. |
Lana's family moved around a lot during her childhood before settling in Los Angeles. After a few small family comedy shows, her parents encouraged her to pursue acting and the arts. After finishing middle school, Lana attended the Joffrey Ballet, a dance school, and studied acting at the Ailey School of the Performing Arts.
In 2013, Lana transferred to study theater at the California School of Drama. Coming from a background of dance and natural acting, the 1.57 m tall actress immediately received the role of mutant Jubilee in the blockbuster X-Men: Apocalypse in her first time on the big screen.
1.57 m tall Asian mutant
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Lana's petite figure and charisma when casting for the role of Jubilee completely conquered the director. |
The mutant Jubilee in X-Men: Apocalypse is Lana Condor's first film role. Before that, she had only acted on stage and had never acted in a film. To have a chance in the cinema, Lana Condor was supported by an image promotion and representation company.
Jubilee is a small, colorful, black-haired Asian mutant who can shoot lightning and fireworks from her fingertips. This mutant makes the atmosphere at Professor Charles Xavier's school more lively and cheerful.
“This was my third time auditioning. When Bryan Singer asked me if I could cut my hair short, I said I would shave my head for the role,” Lana revealed. After the performance, Bryan Singer said that Lana’s small stature and expressive English accent suited the role, but she was a bit of a risk because she had never acted before.
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Lana in a scene from the blockbuster X-Men: Apocalypse |
As soon as she knew she got the role, she bought 300 X-Men comic books to research the character. In addition to reading the comics, Lana watched all the X-Men movies and cartoons. She did meticulous research to fully transform into the character even though she might not have as much screen time as other actors. "Jubilee is a stubborn character. She is attractive because she is strong, self-aware and always satisfied with herself. This is the type of strong girl I like," Lana once shared.
After X-Men: Apocalypse was released in more than 70 markets on May 20, Lana has received more attention from audiences. With a record of starring in blockbusters grossing 234 million USD, Lana Condor is a potential actress in Hollywood.
According to VNE