Julia Hsu‘s career as an actor undoubtedly short, with only two acting credits to her name before she quietly disappeared from the limelight. Her debut role being in the Hollywood blockbuster Rush Hour alongside Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, while the other was a role in an independent short film. Despite the short amount of time she was on screen, many fans of Rush Hour remember Hsu fondly, with her first scenes being incredibly funny.
In more recent times, the clip of her singing “Fantasy” by Mariah Carey, has become a viral sensation on social media, contributing to the renewed interest in her and her career. With Hsu briefly returning to people’s minds as a viral sensation, many have been wondering what happened to her after Rush Hour. Here is everything you need to know about the former actress and her life after Rush Hour.
Julia Hsu’s One Major Film Role
Hsu only has one major film credit to her name, but it is a pretty big one and she can forever be proud that she was part of such an iconic movie and franchise. At the age of 11, Hsu featured in Rush Hour alongside Chan and Tucker. In the movie, Hsu played Soo-Yung, the daughter of Consul Solon Han (Tzi Ma), a Hong Kong diplomat residing in Los Angeles. Soo-Yung is kidnapped by employees of notorious crime lord Juntao (Tom Wilkinson), bringing Chief Inspector Lee (Jackie Chan) to the United States to locate and save her by joining forces with Detective James Carter (Chris Tucker).
Having Chan and Tucker as mentors to learn from is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for any actor, and even though Hsu didn’t stay in acting, this was likely an invaluable experience for the young star. Hsu was able to take traits from both actors, with her being a scrappy fighter by performing moves on the kidnappers that Chan’s characters had taught her. As well as having a few comedic lines when she dared the kidnappers to detonate the bomb they had strapped to her, knowing full well that the villains wouldn’t go through with it.
Life After Rush Hour
Following her appearance in Rush Hour, Hsu played the character of Theresa in the 2001 short film Three Exits. Apart from this, Hsu has no other movie credits to her name and left the industry as a teenager, and hasn’t really been heard from since. The character of Soo-Yung did make a return in Rush Hour 3, however, the character wasn’t played by Hsu. Instead, the now-adult portrayal of the character was done by Zhang Jingchu.
If the name doesn’t ring a bell for you it is understandable as Jingchu has largely starred in films produced in China and Hong Kong, with her biggest western role outside of Rush Hour 3 being playing a CIA analyst named Lauren in Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation alongside Tom Cruise. Rush Hour 3 was released in 2007, six years after Hsu’s last role in Three Exits after which she left the industry, which is perhaps why the role had to be recast.
Where Is She Now?
After deciding that acting wasn’t for her, Hsu quietly disappeared from the limelight to continue on with her life. As she grew older, Hsu later earned a degree in business-cinema television from the University of Southern California, and an MBA from the University of California. It is believed that Hsu is working in Human Resources positions in the tech industry in California. What’s interesting is that Hsu joins a league of many notable child stars to leave the Hollywood for traditional professions. Jennifer Stone, who played Harper on Wizards of Waverly Place, now works as Nurse. While Jeff Cohen, who stared as Chunk in The Goonies, is now an entertainment lawyer.
To make things more confusing for those wanting to check in on what Hsu has been up to, there is also another public figure by the same name who is an aspiring rapper and social media influencer. This has led to many images of this woman being labeled as Hsu from Rush Hour as an adult, and the rapper has added that they are not the same person in her social media bios.
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