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Lawrence Kao

Lawrence Kao

Actor · Born May 14, 1985 (41) · Hacienda Heights, California, United States

Lawrence Kao is an American actor, best known for his roles as Tommy Wah in the Netflix series Wu Assassins, Donnie Lu in the Fox series Sleepy Hollow.

Biography from TMDB.

Born
May 14, 1985 (41)
From
Hacienda Heights, California, United States
Works as
Actor
Titles
29 on MovieCove · 34 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 156 days to Oct 27Up 47% in 30 days

What are Lawrence Kao's films like?

Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Self.

Genres

Drama4 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 38th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Action2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 11th percentile
: browse their Action movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
29%
Self
24%
Bonds
21%
Society
12%
Power
10%
Survival
4%
Justice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this themePower2 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 7 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 3 · Serious 2 · Dark 2

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 3 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 1

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 1 · Charged 3 · Intense 3

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 3 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 1

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 5 · Some laughs 2 · Funny 0

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 2 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 1

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 3 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 1

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 3

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

A split, not a type: Resolved 4 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 2

Roles they play

4 analyzed roles

Usually the Hero: 3 of 4 analyzed roles.

Hero
3 of 4
Ally
1 of 4

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
6
Hopeful
4
Thrilling
3
Melancholic
3
Dread
2
Other
7

How their films linger

Hopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 4 with a twist

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet1
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous5

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Lawrence Kao's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 22 of their 29 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Netflix (8).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Lawrence Kao's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

34 credits, 29 with a MovieCove page.

  • Mushroom Dad (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)

    as Julian

  • Ba(2024)

    as Daniel

    Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films

  • Avatar: The Last Airbender(2024)

    Show 1 episode · as Younger Iroh · as Younger Roku

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all shows

  • The Mission(2023)

    as John Chau (voice)

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • Walker: Independence(2022)

    Show 13 episodes · as Kai

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all shows

  • Fistful of Vengeance(2022)

    as Tommy Wah

    Midcredits score: 15th percentile of all films

  • Leverage: Redemption(2021)

    Show 1 episode · as Joseph Cheng

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all shows

  • FBI: Most Wanted(2020)

    Show 1 episode · as Josh Dao

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all shows

  • Wu Assassins(2019)

    Show 10 episodes · as Tommy Wah

    Midcredits score: 26th percentile of all shows

  • Dark/Web(2019)

    Show 1 episode · as Max

    Midcredits score: 7th percentile of all shows

  • Lucky Fifty(2019)

    as Jay

  • The Purge(2018)

    Show 2 episodes · as Andy Tran

    Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all shows

  • Honey: Rise Up and Dance(2018)

    as Jamaica

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • Girlboss(2017)

    Show 1 episode · as Sonny

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all shows

  • Max Steel(2016)

    as Dr. Lee

    Midcredits score: 7th percentile of all films

  • Riotville (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2016)

    as Sung

  • Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life(2016)

    Show 1 episode · Actor

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all shows

  • Circle(2015)

    as Asian Kid

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • The Divergent Series: Insurgent(2015)

    as Erudite Tech #1

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • Scorpion(2014)

    Show 1 episode · as Calvin

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all shows

  • The Originals(2013)

    Show 5 episodes · as Van Nguyen

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows

  • Sleepy Hollow(2013)

    Show 2 episodes · as Donnie Lu

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows

  • A12 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    as Dao

  • 2 Broke Girls(2011)

    Show 1 episode · as Hipster (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all shows

  • Franklin & Bash(2011)

    Show 1 episode · as Netherlands

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all shows

  • Workaholics(2011)

    Show 1 episode · as Party Guy

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows

  • The Walking Dead(2010)

    Show 3 episodes · as Tim

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all shows

  • Hawaii Five-0(2010)

    Show 1 episode · as Ty Amano

    Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all shows

  • NCIS: Los Angeles(2009)

    Show 1 episode · as John Stikler

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all shows

  • NCIS(2003)

    Show 1 episode · as Pete Cannizaro

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all shows

  • Law & Order: Special Victims Unit(1999)

    Show 1 episode · as Charlie

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows

  • Law & Order(1990)

    Show 1 episode · as Chris Wu

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all shows

  • The Underneath: In Fortune's Shadow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    as Derek

  • Unsavory Elements (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    as Tommy

Career shape

Star power in the 89th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 34 titles, 32 of them dated from 1990 to 2025; peak year 2015.

Biggest box office

Max Steel (2016)

$6.3M worldwide

Highest rated

The Mission (2023)

Midcredits 55th

Most popular right now

Wu Assassins (2019)

Film career

19902025

Peak 2015 · steadily prominent in film for years. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting34 of 34: 34 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score51st

By decade

1990s2 · acting2000s2 · acting2010s20 · acting2020s8 · acting

Billing

usually 6th · top billed in 0% of 5 roles

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.

How do Lawrence Kao's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 38th percentile, the median of the 7 of 8 with a score; across their 6 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 37th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

37thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Approval · how many liked their films

32ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Reach · how many have seen their films

82ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 6

Midcredits score across 28 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up9
  • 50th to 74th7
  • 25th to 49th8
  • Below 25th4

Shape of the crowd

10 of their 28 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved5
  • Cult Classic3
  • Crowd Pleaser10
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed9

Most divisive · actor

Fistful of Vengeance (2022)

82nd percentile spread · 41% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

The Originals (2013)

Midcredits 96th · 90% liked

Reviewers score the acting 49/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles; fans 67, detractors 28. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Lawrence Kao's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Violence & Gore4 titlesmedian 55 · moderateMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity4 titlesmedian 18 · mildMedian of all films: 32
Profanity4 titlesmedian 59 · moderateMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs3 titlesmedian 5 · minimalMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense4 titlesmedian 33 · mildMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Lawrence Kao work with?

People who share at least 2 of Lawrence Kao's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Roel Reiné shares the most, 2.

Directors

Writers

Actors