Yang Li-tsing, better known as Cynthia Khan (杨丽菁, born 13 December 1968) is a Taiwanese actress, stuntwoman, action star and icon of 90s Girls with Guns cinema.
A trained dancer at age 17 and a black belt taekwondo expert, Cynthia was spotted by the Hong Kong production company, D & B Films Co. who's at its peak of producing films and is actively seeking young, talented stars with potential. Then a fresh face in the film industry, Yang Li-tsing earns her new celebrity name, Cynthia Khan, which is a Portmanteau of the studios' two other leading ladies, Michelle Yeoh (then billed as Michelle Khan) and Cynthia Rothrock.
Cynthia was cast in her first leading role at age 21, in In the Line of Duty III: Force of the Dragon (after Michelle Yeoh turned down the opportunity to star in the third film, causing the studios to create a whole new character, Rachel Yeung, played by Cynthia). The film, and its follow-up, In the Line of Duty 4: Witness would kickstart Cynthia's status as a leading action star in B-grade cinema. More often than not, Cynthia would get to kick ass with fellow Action Girl actresses like Moon Lee, Yukari Oshima, Michiko Nishiwaki (which Khan battled in In The Line Of Duty III: Force of the Dragon), and fellow B-grade Taiwanese star Sibelle Hu.
Ever since her debut, Khan has starred in over 50 films, most of which are action movies from the 1990s.
Tropes Associated with Cynthia Khan:
- Action Girl: Represents Taiwan in 90s B-grade action films, alongside Sibelle Hu.
- Dance Battler: She starts off as a trained dancer before training in martial arts, not unlike Michelle Yeoh.
- Iconic Sequel Character: Her character, Rachel Yeung from the In the Line of Duty series, doesn't show up until the third movie, and yet she's the main character and practically the face of the series.
- Outside Ride: In In the Line of Duty 4: Witness and In the Line of Duty V - Middle Man.
- Scarf of Asskicking: As Rachel Yeung in the In The Line Of Duty movies.
Cynthia Khan's notable films:
- Deadend Of Besiegers
- Blade Of Fury
- In the Line of Duty III: Force of the Dragon
- In the Line of Duty 4: Witness
- In The Line Of Duty 5 Middle Man
- A Serious Shock! Yes Madam!
- Three Headed Monster - sadly, it's NOT a movie about Cynthia Khan fighting King Ghidorah, even though that concept would be awesome
- The Inspector Wears Skirts
- Tiger Cage 2
- The Top Lady Of Sword
- In The Line Of Duty 6 Forbidden Arsenal
- Murders Made to Order - The Cameo
- Madam City Hunter - A Gender Flipped remake of Jackie Chan's City Hunter. It didn't fare as well with critics.
- Sea Wolves
- Ultimate Revenge
- The Avenging Quartet
- Eternal Fist
- Queens High
- The Gods Must Be Funny In China
- Angel on Fire
- Tough Beauty And The Sloppy Slop
- The 13 Cold-Blooded Eagles - remake of the Shaw Brothers classic, The Avenging Eagle
