Angela Zhou was born in Guangzhou, China, and raised in Auckland, New Zealand. Half Hakka (a Chinese ethnic minority group), Angela grew up learning Mandarin from her mother's side and Cantonese from her father's side.A high school scheduling conflict led Angela to her first drama class where she discovered acting. From then on, she took up every opportunity to act in musicals, dramas, and classical productions. Her interest in Shakespearean productions in particular led her to train with SGCNZ's Young Shakespeare Company at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, London.In 2010, Angela moved to the U.S. to study at Duke University as a Robertson Scholar. She graduated in 2014 with an A.B. degree majoring in Politics, Economics, and Creative Media and moved to Los Angeles where she caught her first big break as Mei/Fong on AMC's Hell on Wheels (2011).