Harry Potter star Katie Leung unrecognisable after edgy makeover

Katie Leung is known by Harry Potter fans worldwide as Cho Chang, Harry's onscreen love interest with whom he had his first kiss. But a lot has changed for Katie since she first starred in the fantasy film franchise that shot her to stardom when she was just 16 years old.

Today, the 37-year-old is a far cry from the young girl who stole Harry's heart. With an edgier short haircut and a passion for women's rights, Katie has chosen to play some pretty powerful characters over the years. Here's what she's been up to in recent years.

The overnight popularity that came with starring the Harry Potter movies was a "huge shock to the system" Katie said.

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"My face was everywhere and I just broke down. It really affected me like really badly," she said in a 2021 interview on the podcast Chinese Chippy Girl. "I was Googling myself at one point, and I was on this website, which was kind of dedicated to the hardcore Harry Potter fandom... and, yeah, it was a lot of racist s**t."

While Katie thought acting might not be for her, she pursued it and has scored herself some notable roles on screen and stage. She starred in the Love Coming Home music video by popular Hong Kong singer Leo Ku and was then cast in the stage production of Jung Chang's autobiographical play Wild Swans.

She also appeared in the successful TV miniseries Run and One Child, and even starred alongside Jackie Chan and Pierce Brosnan in the movie The Foreigner.

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However, it seems Katie's biggest achievement was welcoming her son Wolf, who was born in October. "Halloween baby Wolf wishes you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!" she shared with her 395,000 Instagram followers.

Future plans

So what’s next for Katie? Well, she's recently appeared in the second season of The Wheel of Time and the miniseries Nightsleeper.

She's also set to star as Lady Araminta Gun in the highly-anticipated fourth season of Bridgerton.

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