Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily Entertainment GuideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsCannes Film FestivalStar WarsAsian Pacific American Heritage MonthSummer Watch GuideSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Biography
  • Awards
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

John Cho

  • Actor
  • Producer
  • Writer
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,0001331
John Cho
Take a closer look at the various roles John Cho has played throughout his acting career.
Play clip1:17
John Cho | Career Retrospective
98 Videos
99+ Photos
John Yohan Cho was born in Seoul, South Korea, and moved to Los Angeles, California as a child. His father was a Christian minister. Cho was educated at Herbert Hoover High School at Glendale, before moving on to the University of California at Berkeley, where he studied English literature. Upon graduation, he moved back to Los Angeles, working for a while as a teacher at Pacific Hills School where he taught 7th grade English. He also began acting with the famed Asian American theatre company East West Players.

A screen acting career began with small roles in projects such as Wag the Dog (1997), Bowfinger (1999), and the critical favorite Better Luck Tomorrow (2002). His breakthrough came when he appeared in the teen romance comedy American Pie (1999) and helped coin the phrase "MILF". Other roles followed, and he scored another hit in the slacker comedy Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004). Cho also starred in the hugely successful franchise reboot Star Trek (2009), in the sought-after role of Hikaru Sulu, and has continued working steadily in Hollywood, starring in the indie drama Columbus (2017), thriller film Searching (2018), and the horror follow-up The Grudge (2019). As well as acting, Cho is also a singer and performs in the band Viva La Union.

He is married to actress Kerri Higuchi, and they have two children.
BornJune 16, 1972
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornJune 16, 1972
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5,0001331
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 6 wins & 8 nominations total

    Asian Icons of Film and Television

    Asian Icons of Film and Television

    Celebrate some of the most iconic Asian actors from film and television, from Priyanka Chopra Jonas to Ke Huy Quan, plus many more.
    See the full gallery
    Production art
    Photos

    Photos402

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 396
    View Poster

    Known for

    Star Trek (2009)
    Star Trek
    7.9
    • Sulu
    • 2009
    John Cho and Kal Penn in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)
    Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle
    7.0
    • Harold Lee
    • 2004
    Searching (2018)
    Searching
    7.6
    • David Kim
    • 2018
    Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)
    Star Trek Into Darkness
    7.7
    • Sulu
    • 2013

    Credits

    Edit
    IMDbPro

    Actor



    • The Men's Room
      • Bob
      • Released
      • TV Series
      • 2004
    • Poker Face
      • Released
      • TV Series
      • 2025
    • Tempest
      • In Production
      • TV Series
      • 2025
    • Untitled Star Trek: Beyond Sequel
      • Sulu
      • Pre-production
    • Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother
      • In Production
    • Rhona Who Lives by the River
      • D'John
      • Post-production
      • TV Series



    • Alexander Skarsgård, Shane Daly, Tamara Podemski, Akshay Khanna, Noma Dumezweni, Sabrina Wu, Jennifer Sendaula, Kayla Mirage, David Dastmalchian, Leah Kilpatrick, Tattiawna Jones, Josh Cruddas, Anna Konkle, Maroc Rey, and Negin Kamali in Murderbot (2025)
      Murderbot
      7.4
      TV Series
      • Captain
      • 2025
    • Afraid (2024)
      Afraid
      5.2
      • Curtis
      • 2024
    • Drop Dead Audiobook (2024)
      Drop Dead Audiobook
      Video
      • Wesley Chen (voice)
      • 2024
    • Robert Downey Jr., Sandra Oh, Hoa Xuande, and Fred Nguyen Khan in The Sympathizer (2024)
      The Sympathizer
      6.8
      TV Mini Series
      • James Yoon
      • 2024
    • Krapopolis (2023)
      Krapopolis
      6.5
      TV Series
      • Thief (voice)
      • 2024
    • Michelle Yeoh, Sam Song Li, and Justin Chien in The Brothers Sun (2024)
      The Brothers Sun
      7.5
      TV Series
      • John Cho (voice, uncredited)
      • 2024
    • Patrick Stewart, Curtis Armstrong, Dee Bradley Baker, Chris Diamantopoulos, Jeff Fischer, Scott Grimes, David Koechner, Seth MacFarlane, Kevin Michael Richardson, Wendy Schaal, Daisuke Suzuki, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Mike Barker, Mike Henry, Rachael MacFarlane, and Matt McKenna in American Dad! (2005)
      American Dad!
      7.4
      TV Series
      • Vince Chung (voice)
      • 2006–2023
    • Elizabeth Perkins, John Cho, Ken Jeong, Vivian Wu, Tiffany Haddish, Zach Woods, Jack Whitehall, Paul Walter Hauser, Zoë Chao, Sam Richardson, Anna Konkle, and Poppy Liu in The Afterparty (2022)
      The Afterparty
      7.3
      TV Series
      • Ulysses
      • 2023
    • Praise Petey (2023)
      Praise Petey
      6.0
      TV Series
      • Bandit (voice)
      • 2023
    • The Graduates (2023)
      The Graduates
      5.3
      • John
      • 2023
    • Chris Evans and Ana de Armas in Ghosted (2023)
      Ghosted
      5.8
      • The Leopard
      • 2023
    • Don't Make Me Go (2022)
      Don't Make Me Go
      6.7
      • Max Park
      • 2022
    • John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, and Daniella Pineda in Cowboy Bebop (2021)
      Cowboy Bebop
      6.7
      TV Series
      • Spike Spiegel
      • 2021
    • John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, Alex Hassell, and Daniella Pineda in Cowboy Bebop: The Lost Session (2021)
      Cowboy Bebop: The Lost Session
      7.2
      TV Short
      • Spike Spiegel
      • 2021
    • John Cho, Jimmy Wong, and Natasha Liu Bordizzo in Wish Dragon (2021)
      Wish Dragon
      7.2
      • Long (voice)
      • 2021

    Producer



    • Connoisseur
      • executive producer
      • In Production
      • TV Movie



    • The Graduates (2023)
      The Graduates
      5.3
      • executive producer
      • 2023
    • Namoo (2021)
      Namoo
      7.3
      Short
      • executive producer
      • 2021
    • Tigertail (2020)
      Tigertail
      6.6
      • executive producer
      • 2020

    Writer



    • Animated Stories
      3.5
      TV Series
      • story
      • 2013

    • In-development projects at IMDbPro

    Videos98

    John Cho | Career Retrospective
    Clip 1:17
    John Cho | Career Retrospective
    John Cho Gives a "Cowboy Bebop" Tease
    Clip 0:44
    John Cho Gives a "Cowboy Bebop" Tease
    John Cho Gives a "Cowboy Bebop" Tease
    Clip 0:44
    John Cho Gives a "Cowboy Bebop" Tease
    Where 'Star Trek 4' Should Boldly Go
    Clip 4:16
    Where 'Star Trek 4' Should Boldly Go
    Star Trek: "Kirk Meets McCoy"
    Clip 0:44
    Star Trek: "Kirk Meets McCoy"
    You're My Musical Soulmate
    Clip 1:04
    You're My Musical Soulmate
    I'm Not a Cab
    Clip 0:57
    I'm Not a Cab

    Personal details

    Edit
    • Official sites
      • Instagram
      • X
    • Height
      • 5′ 10″ (1.78 m)
    • Born
      • June 16, 1972
      • Seoul, South Korea
    • Spouse
      • Kerri Higuchi2006 - present (2 children)
    • Children
        Kage Cho
    • Other works
      His first professional performance was "The Woman Warrior", based on the novel by Maxine Hong Kingston and produced first by the Berkeley Repertory Theatre, then the Huntington Theatre in Boston, Mass., and finally the James Doolittle Theatre in Los Angeles.
    • Publicity listings
      • 1 Interview
      • 3 Articles
      • 1 Pictorial

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Received his Bachelor's degree in English Literature from the University of California, Berkeley (1996).
    • Quotes
      With music, I get to feel real ownership with what I do. I write it, I perform it and even if it is crap, it is mine. With acting, you are a small part of the creative process, and sometimes it is hard to feel like you are making an impact.

    FAQ

    Powered by Alexa
    • How old is John Cho?
      52 years old
    • When was John Cho born?
      June 16, 1972
    • Where was John Cho born?
      Seoul, South Korea
    • What is John Cho's birth name?
      John Yohan Cho
    • How tall is John Cho?
      5 feet 10 inches, or 1.78 meters

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb app
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb app
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb app
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.