Albert Tsai
Tsai at TIFF in September 2019
Born (2004-08-05) August 5, 2004 (age 19)[1][2]
San Jose, California, U.S.[1]
EducationColumbia University
OccupationActor
Years active2013–present
Notable work

Albert Tsai (born August 5, 2004[1][2]) is an American actor. He is known for starring as Fred on the Disney Channel comedy series Coop & Cami Ask the World[3] and as Bert Harrison on ABC’s Trophy Wife from 2013 to 2014. Tsai has also made recurring guest appearances as Phillip Goldstein in the ABC comedy series Fresh Off the Boat. In 2014, at the age of nine, he earned a Best Supporting Actor nomination from the Critics' Choice Television Awards for his performance on ABC’s comedy series Trophy Wife.[4] In 2015, Tsai was named one of Entertainment Weekly's 12 Best Child Actors of 2015 for his work on Dr. Ken.[2] In 2019, Tsai starred as Peng in the DreamWorks Animation and Pearl Studio animated feature film Abominable, released by Universal Pictures on September 27, 2019.[5]

Career

Tsai was born and raised in San Jose, California. He is bilingual and speaks Mandarin fluently.[3] Tsai discovered his interest in acting at seven years old, while he participated in a school play. In 2013, he had his first television appearance on the CBS series How I Met Your Mother.[6] Later that year, Tsai was cast as Bert Harrison, the adopted Chinese son of an attorney and his ex-wife, in the critically acclaimed comedy series Trophy Wife.[7][8] His acting on the show earned him a nomination for Best Supporting Actor from the Critics' Choice Television Awards and he was named as a Breakout TV Star of 2013 by The Huffington Post.[3][9] Tsai was a regular cast-member on the show until its cancellation in 2014.[10]

In 2014, Tsai guest starred in the USA Network's comedy Benched,[11] and as a boy scout who helps Betty White in the TV Land series Hot in Cleveland.[3][8] He also made his standup comedy debut on The Arsenio Hall Show.[12] In 2015, Tsai appeared in two episodes of the ABC series Fresh Off the Boat[13] and starred in the film Grandma Money as Pope, a neglected and shy 9 year old. Later that year Tsai was cast as Dave Park, the son of main character Ken Park (Ken Jeong), in the ABC comedy Dr. Ken.[14][15][16] Shortly after the series premiered, Tsai was named one of Entertainment Weekly's 12 Best Child Actors of 2015.[2] In 2016, Tsai guest starred in The CW comedy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, voiced a character on The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show, and won the Best Young Actor in a Television series at the first Young Entertainer Awards.[17] In 2017, Tsai guest starred in the 9JKL pilot and was promoted to series regular for the first season of CBS' family comedy.[18]

In 2018, Tsai was cast as Fred on Disney Channel's new live-action comedy Coop and Cami Ask the World which premiered on October 12, 2018.[19] In 2019, Tsai starred as Peng in DreamWorks’ animated feature film Abominable, released on September 27 by Universal Pictures.[20]

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2013 How I Met Your Mother Kaden Episode: "Something Old"
2013–2014 Trophy Wife Bert Harrison Main role
2014 Hot in Cleveland Jimmy Episode: "Stayin Alive"
The Arsenio Hall Show Himself Episode #1.128
Benched Walter Episode: "Campaign Contributions"
2014–2016 Home and Family Himself 3 episodes
2015–2016 Fresh Off the Boat Phillip Goldstein 3 episodes
2015–2017 Dr. Ken Dave Park Main role
2016 Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Xiao Wong Episode: "When Will Josh See How Cool I Am?"
The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show Kid (voice) 2 episodes
Jimmy Kimmel Live! Himself Episode: Lin-Manuel Miranda/Ken Jeong and Albert Tsai/ T.I.
2017–2018 9JKL Ian Main role
2018–2020 Coop & Cami Ask the World Fred Main role
2021 Action Royale Henry Main role

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2015 Grandma Money Pope Lead
2016 Donald Trump's The Art of the Deal: The Movie Kid 2
2019 Abominable Peng Lead (Voice role)
2022 Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules Drew Voice role

Awards and nominations

Year Association Category Nominated work Result
2014 Critics' Choice Television Awards Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Trophy Wife Nominated
Young Artist Awards Best Performance in a TV Series - Best Supporting Young Actor Trophy Wife Nominated
2015 Young Artist Awards Best Performance in a TV Series - Guest Starring Young Actor - 10 and under Benched Won
Young Artist Awards Best Performance in a TV Series - Leading Young Actor - 13 and under Trophy Wife Nominated
2016 Young Artist Awards Best Performance in a TV Series - Best Supporting Young Actor Dr. Ken Nominated
Young Entertainer Awards Best Supporting Young Actor -Television Series Dr. Ken Won
2017 Young Artist Awards Best Performance in a TV Series - Leading Young Actor Dr. Ken Nominated

References

  1. ^ a b c "Coop & Cami Ask the World Show Bios". Disney ABC Press. Archived from the original on September 17, 2018. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d "EW's 12 under 12:The Best Child Actors of 2015". Entertainment Weekly. October 28, 2015. Archived from the original on November 4, 2018. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d "Character Biography". ABC. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  4. ^ Bacle, Ariana (May 28, 2014). "Critics' Choice TV Awards 2014: And the Nominees Are..." Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  5. ^ "DreamWorks Animation And Pearl Studio Announce Cast Of "Abominable" At Annecy International Animation Festival" (Press release). DreamWorks Animation. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  6. ^ Stanhope, Kate (March 3, 2014). "Trophy Wife Shines the Spotlight on Breakout Star Albert Tsai with Birthday Blowout". TV Guide. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  7. ^ Barney, Chuck (November 12, 2013). "'Trophy Wife': San Jose's Albert Tsai Shines in ABC Sitcom". The Mercury News. San Jose, California. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  8. ^ a b Nededog, Jethro (March 13, 2014). "'Trophy Wife's' Albert Tsai to Guest on 'Hot in Cleveland' Live Premiere". The Wrap. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  9. ^ Miller, Hilary (December 25, 2013). "Presenting the Breakout TV Stars of 2013". The Huffington Post. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  10. ^ Osman, Sarah. "Catching Up With: "Dr Ken" Star Albert Tsai". Young Hollywood. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  11. ^ Furlong, Maggie (October 28, 2014). "'Benched' on USA:Funny Concept, Amazing Cast... We're In". Yahoo Tv. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  12. ^ "Albert Tsai Makes His Standup Comedy Debut". Aol. On. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  13. ^ Nguyen, Hanh (March 9, 2015). "Fresh Off the Boat Exclusive Video: Eddie Meets the New Kid.. Albert Tsai!". TV Guide. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  14. ^ Stasak, Jennifer (October 23, 2015). "Dr. Ken's Albert Tsai Talks Comedy and Kung Fu". Tell-Tale TV. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  15. ^ Miller, Gregory (October 22, 2015). "Dr. Ken's Albert Tsai Steals the Spotlight as the Precocious Mini-Adult". TV Insider. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  16. ^ Swift, Andy (February 17, 2015). "Pilot News: Trophy Wife's Albert Tsai Joins ABC Comedy Dr. Ken". TVLine. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  17. ^ Fernandez, Maria Elena (November 11, 2016). "Albert Tsai on Dr. Ken and His Very Busy Sitcom Career". Vulture. Retrieved December 24, 2016.
  18. ^ "'9JKL': Albert Tsai Upped To Series Regular on CBS Comedy". Deadline Hollywood. June 19, 2017. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  19. ^ "Disney Channel Greenlights Live-Action Comedy 'Coop and Cami Ask the World'". The Hollywood Reporter. May 4, 2018. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  20. ^ "DreamWorks Animation And Pearl Studio Announce Cast of "Abominable" At Annecy International Animation Festival" (Press release). DreamWorks Animation. Retrieved June 17, 2018.

External links