Jonathan Kos-Read

Jonathan Kos-Read (born 1973), also known by the stage name Cao Cao , is an American film and television actor who has worked mostly in China. While well known in China, his work is little-known in the United States. Kos-Read's Chinese stage name is namesaked after the infamous penultimate chancellor of the late Eastern Han dynasty, a historical figure well-known to most Chinese people via the classic literature Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Early life and education Kos-Read was born in Torrance, California, in 1973. Kos-Read began studying Mandarin Chinese at New York University, and re-located to China in 1997. The title of the show was a reference to the Chinese proverb "Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao will be there" ("说曹操曹操就到"), roughly equivalent to the English saying, "Speak of the devil." He has starred in more than 75 productions. As a Caucasian who is fully fluent in Mandarin Chinese, Kos-Read frequently appears as the foreign love interest or villain, in roles that sometimes present stereotypical images of non-Chinese people. At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Kos-Read was one of those chosen to carry the Olympic torch on its way to the Olympic Stadium.

Kos-Read had a successful career as a male model.

In 2021, Kos-Read published his first novel, The Eunuch, a mystery set in Imperial China.

Personal life Kos-Read is married to a Chinese citizen, Li Zhiyin, with whom he has two daughters, Roxanne and Persephone. While continuing to work in the Chinese film industry, he has relocated to Barcelona, Spain with his family.