Xu Huihui (; born February 9, 1986) is an actress and former competitive wushu taolu athlete who lives in the United States. She is a three-time world champion and is one of the most renowned athletes to represent a European country at the

World Wushu Championships The World Wushu Championships (WWC) is an international sports championship hosted by the International Wushu Federation (IWUF) for the sports of wushu taolu and sanda (sanshou). It has been held biennially since 1991 and is the pinnacle event ...

. In her acting career, she is best known for portraying Helen Takahama /

Widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died. Terminology The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed ''widowhood''. An archaic term for a widow is "relict," literally "someone left over". This word ...

in the

Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by ...

films '' Black Widow'' and ''

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings ''Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings'' is a 2021 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the character Shang-Chi. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 25th film ...

'' (both 2021).

Early life

On February 9, 1986, Xu was born in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

, China. Xu's mother was Xu Guan Guan who also served as her coach.Steve Bornfeld,
Jade in the USA: Martial arts champ Jade Xu brings her moves to Las Vegas in Michael Jackson ONE
", ''Vegas Seven'' Fall Arts Preview (August 21, 2013). Xu moved with her family to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

at the age of nine.King Of Kung Fu: An interview with rising female star Xu Huihui (Jade)
(November 19, 2012).

Career

Competitive Wushu

At the age of six, Xu started practicing wushu. Competing for Italy, Xu's international debut was at the

2003 World Wushu Championships The 2003 World Wushu Championships was the 7th edition of the World Wushu Championships. It was held at the Indoor Stadium of the Macau Polytechnic Institute in Macau, China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a co ...

in Macau, where she won a silver medal in daoshu. Two years later, she was a triple medalist in the

2005 World Wushu Championships The 2005 World Wushu Championships was the 8th edition of the World Wushu Championships. It was held at the Quan Ngua Sports Palace in Hanoi, Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., ...

in Hanoi, Vietnam, becoming the world champion in daoshu. She was the world champion in the same event two years later at the

2007 World Wushu Championships The 2007 World Wushu Championships was the 9th edition of the World Wushu Championships. It was held at the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium in Beijing, China from November 11 to November 17, 2007. Nearly 1,000 athletes from 89 IWUF national fede ...

in Beijing, China. This qualified her for the women's daoshu and gunshu combined event in the

2008 Beijing Wushu Tournament The 2008 Beijing Wushu Tournament (Chinese: 北京2008武术比赛; pinyin: ''Běijīng 2008 wǔshù bǐsài'') was a wushu competition which was held from August 21 to 24, 2008 at the Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium in Beijing, China. The tourn ...

where she won the silver medal. Her last major international competition was at the

2009 World Wushu Championships The 2009 World Wushu Championships was the 10th edition of the World Wushu Championships. It was held at the Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded populatio ...

in Toronto, Canada, where she was the world champion in gunshu and also won a silver medal in daoshu.

Acting

After retiring from competitive wushu, Xu transitioned to acting. She first starred as Sister Mahjong in ''

Tai Chi 0 ''Tai Chi 1: 0'' (太極之零開始) or ''Tai Chi Zero'' (太極：從零開始) is a 2012 Chinese 3D martial arts film directed by Stephen Fung. It is a fictitious retelling of how the Chen style of the martial art t'ai chi ch'uan, that for ...

'' and ''

Tai Chi Hero ''Tai Chi Hero'' (太極２英雄崛起) is a 2012 Hong Kong-Chinese 3D martial arts film directed by Stephen Fung, written and produced by Chen Kuo-fu. It is the sequel to Fung's 2012 film '' Tai Chi Zero''. It was released in Hong Kong on 25 ...

'', and in the title role in the Chinese TV series ''The Legend of Wing Chun''. In 2012, Xu was recruited to perform in

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...

's '' Michael Jackson: One'' show, in which she plays one of the four central characters. In 2021, she played a Black Widow named Helen in

Marvel Studios Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...

' ''Black Widow'' and reprised her role in ''

'', credited simply as "Widow".

Personal life

Xu is married to David Torok, a fellow wushu competitor. They both reside in the United States.

References

External links

*
Jade Xu
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

Jade Xu's Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Xu, Jade 1986 births Chinese wushu practitioners Sportspeople from Shanghai Chinese expatriates in Italy Cirque du Soleil performers Living people 21st-century Chinese actresses Actresses from Shanghai Competitors at the 2008 Beijing Wushu Tournament Italian wushu practitioners Chinese expatriates in the United States