Doua Moua

Doua Moua (born February 7, 1987) is an American actor, filmmaker, and writer of Hmong descent whose career has become a touchstone for Asian‑American representation in mainstream cinema. Born in a refugee camp in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand to parents who fled the Laotian Civil War, he spent the first six months of his life in displacement before his family resettled in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he grew up surrounded by a tight‑knit Hmong community. While attending the International School of Minnesota in Eden Prairie, a teacher encouraged him to join choir and theater classes, sparking a passion that would later define his professional life; he also participated in community theater productions that honed his early performance skills. Among his notable relatives are former Minnesota state senator Mee Moua and dancer‑actor Aidan Prince, underscoring a family tradition of public engagement.\n\nAfter graduating, Moua moved to New York City to pursue acting, taking an extra role on Law & Order: SVU while working in an Italian restaurant to fund his ambitions. His breakthrough came in 2008 when he was cast as Spider in _Gran Torino_, a performance that not only showcased his talent but also highlighted the under‑represented Hmong experience; the role sparked conversations about gang culture among first‑generation Hmong youths and was described by Minnesota Public Radio as a catalyst for more Hmong involvement in filmmaking. Following that success, he embraced a variety of villainous roles, often joking that his parents gave him “mean eyebrows,” a nod to cultural stereotypes he continues to subvert. Moua also wrote the coming‑of‑age script The Harvest, which earned him semi‑finalist status in the Academy’s Nicholl Fellowship and is slated for production under the direction of Li Lu. Most recently, he portrayed Po in Disney’s live‑action _Mulan_, further cementing his status as a versatile performer who bridges cultural narratives with mainstream storytelling.