Freda Foh Shen (born 25 April 1948; age 76) is an actress who played the Kelvin helmsman in Star Trek. Her role includes at least one action scene in which she was doubled by stuntwoman Peipei Yuan. [1] Shen previously voiced Admiral Alice Liu (β) in the video game Star Trek: Bridge Commander.
She is perhaps best known for her voice performance of the Chinese Food Lady in Dude, Where's My Car? (2005, featuring Christopher Darga, Keone Young, Andy Dick, and Brent Spiner). She had recurring roles as Mrs. Lee in Gideon's Crossing (2000-2001), as Dr. Chao in Everwood (2005, starring Stephanie Niznik), and as Dr. Yolanda Perrin in Close to Home (2006-2007, with Cress Williams).
Shen made her acting debut in the stage play Pacific Overtures in 1976, followed by plays such as The King and I (1977-1978), Shogun, the Musical (1990-1991), and Top Girls, for which she received an Obie Award. Shen was also honored with two Dramalogue Awards and received several nominations, including L.A. Drama Critics Award and Ovation Award nominations.
Since 1981 she also has supporting and leading roles in television productions and feature films. She played a Ticket Agent in Senior Trip (1981, with Jason Alexander and Ron Fassler), a patient in an episode of The Cosby Show (1987), and a self-defense teacher in Crossing Delancey (1988, with Reg E. Cathey). Further feature films include Basic Instinct (1992), Born Yesterday (1993, with Michael Ensign, William Frankfather, Matthew Faison, and Mary Kay Adams), Alien Nation: Millennium (1996, starring Gary Graham, Eric Pierpoint, Michele Scarabelli, with Brian Markinson, Herta Ware, Susan Diol, Kerrie Keane, and Joyce McNeal), The Glimmer Man (1996), and LeVar Burton's The Tiger Woods Story (1998), where she played the mother of Woods and alongside John Cho, Albert Hall, and Carey Scott.
Shen provided the voice of Fa-Li, the mother of the main character, for Mulan (1998), Mulan II (2004), alongside Miguel Ferrer, George Takei, Frank Welker, and David Cowgill in the previous one and Brian Tochi, Keone Young, Frank Welker, and George Takei in the latter one. Other films include American Virgin (2000 film)|American Virgin}} (2000, with Sally Kellerman and Vincent Schiavelli), Planet of the Apes (2001, with David Warner, Erick Avari, Cary-Hiroyuki, Michael Jace, Maria Frasca, and Kevin Grevioux), The Ladykillers (2004, with Tzi Ma and Stephen Root), and Red Doors (2005, with Tzi Ma and Jacqueline Kim).
Shen has also appeared in several television series such as Renegade (1992, with Branscombe Richmond and Scott Jaeck), Silk Stalkings (1993), Nowhere Man (1996, starring Bruce Greenwood and with Zoe McLellan, Melanie Smith, and Leon Russom), Party of Five (1994 and 1996), ER (1998-1999, starring Eriq La Salle, with Penny Johnson, Sam Anderson, Tommy Hinkley, Franc Ross, Lily Mariye, and Terri Garr), Chicago Hope (1997 and 1999, starring Jayne Brook), 7th Heaven (1998-2000, starring Stephen Collins and Catherine Hicks), Family Law (2000, with Julie Warner and Christopher McDonald), Roswell (2002, starring William Sadler and with Jack Donner and Karl Wiedergott), Without a Trace (2002), 24 (2002, with Timothy Carhart, Michelle Forbes, Tracy Middendorf, Harris Yulin, and Penny Johnson), and Desperate Housewives (2004, with Teri Hatcher, Steven Culp, Mark Moses, Brenda Strong, and Dayna Devon).
Shen played Dr. Ann Kumi in Boston Legal (2006, starring René Auberjonois and William Shatner, with Don McManus, Ron Canada, Shannon O'Hurley, and Joanna Cassidy) and Detective Maggie Conrad in Primal Doubt (2007).