Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) alumna Michelle Yeoh triumphs as she wins the 2023 Academy Award for Best Actress.

There are few better places to explore and achieve your creative ambitions than the Manchester School of Art – one of the oldest and largest art schools in the UK. Once again, we see the global impact of the students who have come through this institution, founded in 1838. Learn a little more about the 2023 Oscar winner and her connection to education in the UK.

The actress graduated in 1983 with a BA in Creative Arts and Drama.

Michelle Yeoh, winner of the Academy Award for Best Actress, and several other awards, in 2022 and 2023, graduated in the UK with a BA in Creative Arts and Drama in 1983.

Also, Yeoh, at 60, became the first Asian actress to win the coveted award, for her role as laundry manager Evelyn Wang in the comedy-drama Everything Everywhere All at Once.

Born in the Malaysian city of Ipoh to a family of Cantonese descent, Michelle faced stiff competition, including from Cate Blanchett for “Tár” and Michelle Williams for “The Fabelmans”.

While never dreaming of becoming a film actress, her passion was ballet, and she initially studied at the Royal Ballet Academy in London, but a back injury ended her hopes of becoming a professional dancer.

Soon after graduating at MMU, Michelle returned home in the Summer of 1983 and won the Miss Malaysia beauty pageant.

She then achieved fame in the 1990s after appearing in a series of Hong Kong produced action movies.

Moving to the US, she built a successful film career, starring in blockbusters including, among others: Tomorrow Never Dies, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Memoirs of a Geisha, The Lady and Crazy Rich Asians. Michelle Yeoh has appeared in over 60 films in her nearly 40-year career.

This is a beacon of hope and possibility. Dreams do come true.

Despite not being a martial art professional, Michele has always caught the attention of directors and her peers for skipping stunts, putting her best effort into fight scenes, and performing her own dangerous scenes. Using her ballet skills and lots of training, Yeoh excelled in action plot roles and dramatic roles.

After attracting a great deal of critical and public attention during the most recent awards season, with Everything Everywhere All At Once, Michelle dedicated her Oscar to “all the boys and girls who look like me watching tonight.” She continued, “This is a beacon of hope and possibility. Dreams do come true.”

Manchester Metropolitan University, of whom UK Student Solutions Ltd is a proud partner, officially opened the Grosvenor East Building recently, a new creative centre for the Arts and Humanities dedicated to training the next generation of artists, writers, journalists and linguists. Grosvenor East is home to the Manchester School of Drama, whose famous alumni, besides Michelle, include Steve Coogan (Philomena, A Night at the Museum, Stan and Ollie, etc.) Zawe Ashton (The Handmaid’s Tale) and Julie Walters (Educating Rita, Mamma Mia, Harry Potter, etc.) and continues to deliver the University’s drama courses.

Inspired by Michele’s story? Want to know about what course options are available at Manchester Metropolitan University?