KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian actress and Hollywood star Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh has been named the 2022 Icon of the Year by popular US magazine Time in recognition of her contributions to the film industry.
A post on the publisher's official Instagram account yesterday described the Ipoh-born international artiste as being a "major star in Asia for decades."
The caption read: "She was a giant in the golden age of Hong Kong action cinema, top-lining dozens of films and earning a reputation for nailing daring stunts."
"And she made her Hollywood debut in the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies, following up that success with roles in major movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Crazy Rich Asians, and Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings.
"But, until this year's indie hit Everything Everywhere All At Once — in which Yeoh plays an overburdened wife and mother who must save the world — the now 60-year-old Malaysian actor had never been No.1 on a Hollywood call sheet," it said.
Time further added that this was the moment Yeoh had long been waiting for, namely a big, starring role that could make her a household name, which many believed could win her an Oscar.
The entry also featured a brief excerpt from an interview where Yeoh said, "I've thought about it."
"And not just me — I feel like my full Asian community has thought about it. They come up to me and they say, 'You're doing it for us'," she said.
In August, Yeoh who has more than 70 screen credits over four decades became the first Asian to receive a Doctorate of Fine Arts from the American Film Institute (AFI) for her contributions of distinction to the art of the moving image.
Aside from this year's Everything Everywhere All At Once, Yeoh has also starred in The School For Good And Evil, Minions: The Rise Of Gru and Paws Of Fury: The Legend Of Hank.
Yeoh's other upcoming films include Avatar: The Way Of Water, The Witcher: Blood Origin, Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts and A Haunting In Venice.