James Kyson

Last updated

James Kyson
JamesKyson1.jpg
Kyson at the opening of the Animal Museum in December 2016
Born
Lee Ji-hoon [1]

(1975-12-13) December 13, 1975 (age 47)[ citation needed ]
Nationality American
South Korean
OccupationActor
Years active2003–present
Spouse
Jamee Mae Berg
(m. 2015)
Children2

James Kyson [2] (born December 13, 1975) is an American actor best known for his television work. Best known for his role as Ando Masahashi on the NBC television series Heroes , his guest appearances on television series include Hawaii Five-0 , NCIS: Los Angeles , Sleepy Hollow , Elementary , and Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders . Earlier in his career, Kyson was credited as James Kyson Lee or James Kyson-Lee.

Contents

Early life and education

Kyson was born Lee Ji-hoon (although his given name was later changed to Jae-hyeok) [1] in Seoul, South Korea. His father was an electrical engineer. He moved with his family to New York City at age 10, where he later attended The Bronx High School of Science. [3] His English name, James, is derived from James Bond. [1] He studied communications at Boston University with the intent of being a sports broadcaster before later transferring to the New England Institute of Art. [2] [1]

In summer of 2001, Kyson sold his car and bought a one-way ticket to Los Angeles with the intent of entering the acting industry. He enrolled in performing arts classes at a community college while auditioning for roles and working as a SAT tutor to pay the bills. [4]

Acting career

Kyson at the premiere of Heroes James Kyson Lee.jpg
Kyson at the premiere of Heroes

After three years in Los Angeles, Kyson landed his first acting role on the military legal television drama JAG in 2003. [4] [5]

He landed guest roles in hit network television series The West Wing and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation amongst others before being cast as one of his more widely known roles, Ando Masahashi in the sci-fi series Heroes . The role required him to speak Japanese. [4] [6] He later stated that he had taken a semester of Japanese in college and did not find learning the language difficult as it was grammatically similar to Korean, in which he is fluent. [7] [6]

Since Heroes ended, he also guest-starred on Hawaii Five-0 , Justified , Animals. , Sleepy Hollow , Elementary , and more recently Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders .

His feature films work includes the romantic comedy Another Time, the thriller The Livingston Gardener - and as a mixed martial arts fighter in the action feature Banana Season.

Kyson was a celebrity judge at the Miss Universe 2007 beauty pageant. [8]

Personal life

Kyson is married to singer and neuroscientist Jamee Kyson ( née  Berg) since 2015. [9]

He is fluent in Korean and learned Japanese to play Ando Masahashi in Heroes. [2]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2006 Asian Stories Jim Lee
2006Off the RocksDonald ParkShort film
2006 Big Dreams Little Tokyo Murakami
2007DobermanJohnny the BartenderDirect-to-video

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
2003 JAG Lieutenant PakEpisode: "Close Quarters"
2003 All About the Andersons JoshEpisode: "Joe's Big Break"
2004 Threat Matrix Vargas KillerEpisode: "PPX"
2004 Unsolved History Mysterious ManEpisode: "Flight KAL-007"
2004 The West Wing Chinese Translator ZhengEpisode: "Impact Winter"
2005Xtreme FakeoversJames ParkerEpisode: "Xtreme Fakeover"
2005–06 Untold Stories of the E.R. X-Ray Doctor, Reenactments, Resident Park3 episodes
2006Stranger AdventuresMysterious ManEpisode: "Helen Beaumont"
2006 Heist Universal Studio GuideEpisode: "Ladies and Gentlemen... Sweaty Dynamite"
2006–2010 Heroes Ando Masahashi61 episodes
2007 Las Vegas Joon Ho ParkEpisode: "Wagers of Sin"
2008 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Officer KwanEpisode: "Say Uncle"
2011 Hawaii Five-0 Sean LeungEpisode: "Ma Ke Kahakai (Shore)"
2012Chasing the HillCurt BarboaEpisode: "Send in the Dancing Chihuahuas"
2012DaybreakGregg HardingEpisode: "Chapter 1"
2012; 2016 Adventure Time Trami, Big Destiny (voices)3 episodes
2012Have You Met Miss Jones?Jacob3 episodes
2013Very Smart BrothersMarcusTelevision film
2013Armed ResponseCharlie Scortino
2013Non-StopKevinTelevision
2013Between BulletsJohnny Parker3 episodes
2014 Justified Yoon2 episodes
2015The StartupMikioEpisode: "Welcome to LA"
2016 Animals Floor Manager (voice)Episode: "Rats"
2016 NCIS: Los Angeles James KangEpisode: "Seoul Man"
2016 School of Rock David KwonEpisode: "We're Not Gonna Take It"
2017Blade of HonorJohn 'Hoss' O'TekjacEpisode: "Frying Pan"
2017 Sleepy Hollow Mark WongEpisode: "Columbia"
2017 Elementary Joey NgEpisode: "Rekt in Real Life"
2017 Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders Detective Joon-Ho KimEpisode: "Pretty Like Me"
2017 Preacher The TechnicianEpisode: "Sokoasha"
2017; 2019 We Bare Bears Additional Voices (voices)2 episodes
2018–19 Star vs. the Forces of Evil Bam Ui Pati Actor, Additional Voices (voices)2 epispdes
2018GlimpseScientist SchulzeEpisode: "Sebastian Moller"
2020Film Lab PresentsTheodore2 episodes
2020 Lovecraft Country Byung-Ho Episode: "Meet Me in Daegu"
2020 Next Bill ZhaiEpisode: "FILE #7"

Video games

YearTitleRoleNotes
2004 Shellshock: Nam '67 Monty, Vietnamese Soldiers, Prisoners and Civilians # 4
2006 Family Guy Video Game! Train Conductor
2007 The Darkness Cop, Peter Chen
2008 Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe Shang Tsung
2013 Grand Theft Auto V The Local Population
2014 Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Additional Voices
2015 Battlefield Hardline Additional Voices
2019 Anthem Dr. Harken

Other activities

Kyson plays basketball for charity celebrity team The Hollywood Knights [10] and participated in Robbie Williams' Soccer Aid for UNICEF at Manchester United's Old Trafford in England.[ citation needed ] He is also an Ambassador for the International Organization Good Neighbors and their Water for Life campaign.[ citation needed ]

Kyson represented the Rest of the World team in 2010 Soccer Aid, a British charity soccer match in aid of UNICEF. [11]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Actor James Kyson". Seoul Journal. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Vanni, Olivia (November 24, 2008). "TV Hero James Kyson Lee was once hometown student". Boston Herald . Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  3. Nuytens, Gilles (April 5, 2007). "James Kyson Lee interview - Heroes". The Scifi World. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 Leung, Julie (Fall 2008). "James Kyson Lee: The Sidekick's Story". Mochi .
  5. "Ten Questions with Heroes Actor James Kyson Lee". TV.com . February 3, 2010. Archived from the original on March 30, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2017.
  6. 1 2 Wolley, Leann (March 2, 2010). "Cross-cultural Acting: an interview with James Kyson Lee and Eriko Tamura". Asia Pacific Arts. University of Southern California. Archived from the original on November 26, 2017.
  7. Cohn, Angel (January 22, 2007). "Heroes Preview: Is Ando More Than Just a Trusty Sidekick?". TV Guide .
  8. "Miss Japan wins Miss Universe 2007". Kokomo Tribune . Associated Press. May 28, 2007. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  9. Kantor, Jonathan H. (August 26, 2017). "Heroes: Where Are They Now?". CBR . Retrieved July 17, 2019.
  10. Ordona, Michael (September 10, 2009). "James Kyson Lee is mortal again and loving it". Los Angeles Times.
  11. "Soccer Aid - Rest of the World team". itv.com . ITV Entertainment. Archived from the original on August 5, 2010.