Whether she's playing a superhuman alongside Brie Larson, a dystopian robot who overcomes her algorithm, or Singapore's most sought-after fashion icon, ELLE UK's latest cover star, Gemma Chan, is the Brit talent storming her way across the big (and small) screen one powerful, but enviably classy, role at a time.
But, tale as old as time for women in Hollywood, the film industry hasn't always spotlighted Chan's inherent talent, preferring instead to focus on her appearance. 'The film industry in the past has been very focussed on youth, almost fetishising it,' Chan tells us while shooting our latest Beauty Truths episode. 'I think that's been incredibly restricting on women - it can be quite oppressive that idea that you're not allowed to age. As an actress it definitely crosses your mind that you're going to be ageing in HD.'
Proud of her British Asian heritage, when the SAG award-nominated actress began her career, she presented an unfortunately rare representation of a more diverse type of beauty than that usually seen on Eurocentric screens. 'There wasn't a great deal of representation for people who looked like us or our family, it was very Eurocentric in the media and magazines. As a teenager, it was the 1990s, it was the era of the supermodels and those were the women you aspired to. It was an idea of beauty that was one thing. You weren't seeing a great range of skin tones or different body types.'
Not one to be limited by producers' fetishised version of her heritage, Chan repeatedly expanded her roles past simply tokenistic and thinks fondly of her identity growing up with a Chinese mum enamoured by 1980s beauty. 'I'm a child of the 80s... my mum was a big inspiration me growing up. She went all in on the Princess Diana haircut. I remember going into her room when I was young and she had her dressing table and the wafts of Elnett in the air.
'She used to cut my hair and I think the "Asian" bowl cut is a rite of passage that I'm sure quite a few people will identify with. There's a haircut she gave me where I had an asymmetric fringe. I forgive her for that!'
Watch Gemma's full Beauty Truths story in the video above.
Gemma Chan's Style File: 20 Unforgettable Looks From The Met Gala to The Oscars
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