Wai Ching Ho died peacefully on July 10 after suffering a stroke. She was 82. Her Daredevil co-star Peter Shinkoda confirmed the news on Instagram Saturday, and Perry Yung followed with a tribute Sunday.
"Wai Ching was a kind, compassionate human being whose work as an artist lifted every production to a higher standard," Yung wrote. "Rest in power, dear friend."
Born in Hong Kong in 1943, Ho built a career spanning more than four decades and nearly 70 screen credits.
Her most recognizable role was Madame Gao, the calculating, mysterious crime boss who appeared in Marvel's Daredevil, Iron Fist and The Defenders on Netflix, a character so quietly menacing that fans have debated for years whether she survived the events of The Defenders.
She also voiced Grandma Wu in Pixar's Turning Red in 2022, appeared in Hustlers alongside Jennifer Lopez, had recurring roles on Fresh Off the Boat and Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens and lent her voice to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
Her final screen appearance was in the 2026 drama The Gardener.
Fellow actor Mahira Kakkar, who worked with her onstage, remembered her giving the same piece of advice to anyone who would listen:
"Eat two slices of raw ginger every day and you won't get sick."
She utterly refused to speak ill of anyone. She was 82 years old and, by all accounts, exactly the kind of person the industry needs more of.