James Kyson

James Kyson Lee
About
Character	Ando Masahashi
Date of birth	13 December 1975
Origin	Seoul, South Korea
Gender
Website
IMDb profile

James Kyson Lee is the Korean-American film and television actor who portrays Ando Masahashi.

About

James was born in Seoul, South Korea, then moved with his family to NYC at the age of 10, where he later attended Bronx H.S. of Science. He studied Communications at Boston University and New England Institute of the Arts, where he also began performing in music, dance, and improv.

In summer of 2001, James sold his used car for $1800, packed one suitcase, purchased a one way ticket, and jetted off to Los Angeles. There he began training in jazz singing, musical theater, and for the first time -- acting. In his first ever Television audition, he landed a guest-starring role on CBS’ JAG, and since has appeared on NBC’s Las Vegas, The West Wing, Heist, as well as ABC’s Threat Matrix, and Fox’s All About the Andersons.

In addition to Heroes, James will be starring in four feature films in 2007 & 2008, including 20th Century Fox's Shutter with Joshua Jackson & Rachel Taylor, Big Deal with Treat Williams, Daniel Baldwin, & Charlotte Ross, Asian Stories:Book 3 opposite Kathy Uyen, and Big Dreams, Little Tokyo starring opposite David Boyle.

He will also be starring in the upcoming action-thriller video game The Darkness, for PlayStation 3 & Xbox 360.

James is also a student of improvisation & sketch comedy, performing at I.O. West and Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles. When he isn’t working, he enjoys playing basketball and the piano, as well as reading biographies, and watching documentaries.

James currently resides in Los Angeles.

James's co-appearances with Heroes castmates include The West Wing (with Ben Murray), Alias (with Greg Grunberg), Threat Matrix (with Colby French and Tina Lifford), Breaking Up with Shannen Doherty (with Dan Warner), and JAG (with Karri Turner).

Trivia

• James's middle name, Kyson, comes from the first letters of his parents’ surnames (k & y) and the word son. It also means "Child of the Spirit".
• James does not speak Japanese fluently, but is learning the language. In an interview, James said he studied Japanese in college. He uses the opportunity that Heroes affords him to learn the conjugations, tenses, and etymologies of the many new words in the scripts. "As an actor, I need to have an emotional connection to everything that is said and heard."
• James was a member of the jury for Miss Universe in 2007. When coming to the final question part, the Korean candidate picked his name. He then asked her, "If you could have a superpower, what would it be and what would you do with it?"

External Links

• Official website - James Kyson Lee
• Live Chat with James Kyson Lee on SuperHiro.org
• Myspace Page
• Interview with James Kyson Lee at comicbookresources.com, 4/19/07
• Interview with James Kyson Lee at The OWI, 7/26/07
• Interview with James Kyson Lee at Heroes Wiki, 8/24/07
• Interview with James Kyson Lee, Zachary Quinto, and Noah Gray-Cabey on The Sauce, 8/27/07: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4
• Interview with James Kyson at TV Watercooler, 9/15/07