Randall Duk Kim

Randall Duk Kim, born September 24, 1943, is an American actor of Chinese and Korean descent whose career spans classical theater, Broadway, film, and voice acting. He is an Obie Award winner and an Outer Critics Circle Award nominee. To film audiences, he is widely recognized for portraying the Keymaker in The Matrix franchise and for voicing Grand Master Oogway in the Kung Fu Panda franchise.

Kim grew up near the Koko Head Crater, raised in a fundamentalist Baptist family. His interest in acting began in childhood after attending a production of Oklahoma! at the Honolulu Community Theatre. During high school, he regularly attended plays at the University of Hawaii, and a visit to the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego exposed him to productions of The Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night, and Richard III. He credited actor Morris Carnovsky with inspiring him to pursue the profession. In 1964, Kim relocated to New York City alongside his friend Charles Bright with the intention of becoming a professional actor. He subsequently spent time in London between 1966 and 1967, working part-time while attending productions by the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Kim began performing in theater at the age of 18, building a repertoire centered on Western classical works by Shakespeare, Chekhov, Ibsen, and Molière. In 1972, he starred in The Chickencoop Chinaman, written by Frank Chin and produced by The American Place Theatre — the first play by an Asian American to receive a professional production in New York. He returned to Chin's work in 1974, starring in the playwright's second play, The Year of the Dragon. That same year, Kim became one of the first Asian-American actors to take a leading role in an American Shakespeare production when he played the title character in the New York Public Theater's staging of Pericles, Prince of Tyre. He later played the title role in Hamlet at the Guthrie Theatre during the 1978–79 season.

In 1977, Kim co-founded the American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Wisconsin with Anne Occhiogrosso and Charles Bright, serving as the theater's artistic director. He is married to Occhiogrosso, who is also an actress and fellow co-founder of the company.

Kim's Broadway career ran from 1996 to 2002. He appeared in the 1996 revival of The King and I, initially playing Kralahome before succeeding to the leading role. His additional Broadway credits include Golden Child and the revised version of Flower Drum Song, both written by David Henry Hwang.

On screen, Kim played General Alak in the 1999 film Anna and the King. He portrayed the Keymaker in The Matrix Reloaded in 2003, a role he was originally approached for by casting director Mali Finn. In 2008, he appeared in the Fringe episode "The Equation" as mathematician Dashiell Kim, and the following year he played Grandpa Gohan in Dragonball Evolution. Kim voiced Grand Master Oogway across three installments of the Kung Fu Panda franchise: the original film in 2008, Kung Fu Panda 2 in 2011, and Kung Fu Panda 3 in 2016.