Michelle Yeoh has described being unable to have children as the “biggest sadness in her life”.
Yeoh, a former legend of Hong Kong action cinema who won a Best Actress Oscar in 2023 for her performance in Everything Everywhere All at Once, opened up in a new interview to promote the release of the movie musical Wicked.
Between 1988 and 1992, Yeoh was married to Hong Kong luxury goods tycoon Dickson Poon, and briefly retired from acting. It was during this time that Yeoh learned she was unable to have children.
Speaking to The Times, Yeoh recalled: “[Retiring] was my choice. I felt that if I wanted this to work I had to give it my all. I’d had a good career, a good run of what I was doing. I was in a very good place and that is the time when you decide what is important. I really wanted to start a family.”
Poon’s desire to have children is one of the reasons behind the couple’s amicable divorce; Yeoh is godmother to her ex-husband’s eldest daughter.
“Maybe that is the biggest sadness in my life, that I cannot have kids,” Yeoh continued. “But the beauty is that I have six godchildren, many nephews and nieces. I don’t live with regrets because I have always given it my 110 per cent.
“I did everything to make it work, and sometimes even that is not enough, you have to be able … In life we say, you have to not go around holding your hands like this [raised, in a protective position]. You have to learn to let go, and sometimes letting go helps you move forward.”
In the interview, Yeoh also recounted her first meeting with Poon, who cast her alongside Jackie Chan in an advert. “My friend showed him my picture and he asked if I was interested in coming to Hong Kong. I was like, what have I got to lose? I packed my bags and met with Dickson. The next thing I knew we were shooting the commercial,” she said.
Yeoh rose to fame in action movies such as Yes, Madam (1985), Magnificent Warriors (1987) and Police Story 3: Supercop (1992). Renowned for subverting gender norms on screen and for performing her own impressive stunts, Yeoh went on to star in hit films such as the 1997 James Bond thriller Tomorrow Never Dies, Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and the multi-Oscar-winning Everything Everywhere All at Once.
In Wicked, Yeoh stars as university head Madame Morrible, alongside Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, and Jeff Goldblum. The film is released in cinemas this week.
