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Cheng Pei-pei died in the San Francisco Bay area on Thursday. She was 78.
The “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” actress had been suffering from a degenerative brain disease, her representatives at Echelon Talent Management confirmed in a statement to People.
The Shanghai, China native’s family also spoke out in a Facebook post.
“It is with a heavy heart that we announce that the rumors are true. Our mother, Cheng Pei-pei, passed away peacefully at home surrounded by her loved ones on July 17,” the statement read. “In 2019, our mom was diagnosed with a neurodegenerative, atypical parkinsonism syndrome – unofficially, corticobasal degeneration (CBD). It is a rare disease with symptoms similar to Parkinson’s disease, however, current treatments cannot slow the progression. She chose not to make this news public so that she could deal with her condition in private and spend her remaining time with her children and grandchildren.”
“Our mom wanted to be remembered by how she was: the legendary Queen of Martial Arts.”
Pei-pei was born in Shanghai, China in 1946. She joined the Shaw Brothers Studio as a contracted player after she moved to Hong Kong in 1962. She made 20 films with the production company, with roles in “Come Drink With Me,” “Princess Iron Fan,” “Golden Swallow” and more.
Often known as a pioneer of martial arts roles, she also studied ballet and dance.
In 2000, she would go on to star as villain Jade Fox in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” opposite Michelle Yeoh. The Ang Lee-directed film earned four Oscars and made history as the first foreign-language film to gross more than $100 million at the box office.
Pei-pei is survived by her four children.