Biography

As of April 13, 2023, the Medical Board of California lists his medical license (A 65869) as "Renewed & Current" (meaning he meets requirements for the practice of medicine in California) until July 31, 2024. He is licensed to practice medicine under his birth name, Kendrick Kang-Joh Jeong. This means that despite his successful career as an actor in film and television, Jeong so far continues to maintain his ability to return to his first career as a medical doctor.

Attended and graduated from Walter Hines Page High School, where he participated in the regional quiz bowl, was elected to the student council, and played violin in the school orchestra (1986).

Grew up in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Received his Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina (1990). Received his Doctor of Medicine (D.M.) degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1995). Attended theater classes at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television at 1708 Vine Street in Hollywood, California on October 23, 2024. Fellow actors Joel McHale and Randall Park were guest speakers at the ceremony. His Walk of Fame star is located at the historic corner of Hollywood and Vine.

(2011, on landing his role in Transformers 3) Transformers 3 was really a recommendation from Todd Phillips, actually, to Michael Bay. Michael Bay had a role for me in mind and I met with him last spring. I play a co-worker of Shia LaBeouf and it was one of the greatest moments of my career because I saw how the big boys do it. This is sci-fi, this is action, this is fantasy, this is Steven Spielberg producing, and all my scenes were with Shia. And to work with CGI is the hardest form of acting ever, for me personally...I have to create that energy myself and then react off that energy. It's so much harder to do, so much harder mentally. That's why I have the highest respect for Shia, because he does that all the time. Three movies. Michael is a genius at finessing those reactions out and finessing that vision.

(2011) I remember I heard an interview on NPR where Terry Gross had asked Denzel Washington, "Do you look for roles that are role models for the community?" And he said, and this is Denzel Washington talking, the icon, "No! If I'm following what other people want me to do, I wouldn't be doing my job as an artist, as an actor. That would be so boring." I'm very inspired by that. I think about that a lot.

(2011, On the Hangover cast) I've known Zach (Galifianakis) for a decade, from doing stand-up. And I did a movie with Bradley (Cooper) prior to the first Hangover and a movie with Ed (Helms) prior to the first Hangover. So we're friends and we know each other, and on the second movie we got to be even better friends. Me and Ed went to Cambodia with his friends to go on a bicycle tour of Angkor Wat and the Buddhist temples there. I think people are always surprised to hear how mellow and close-knit we are. It's not like we're in character setting garbage fires in Bangkok in our off time! We're not crazy.

(2011, on getting involved in The Hangover Part II) I got an e-mail from Todd saying, "We'll be requiring your services," and then he gave me the script and I was crying laughing. The script, actually, was better than the first one because in the first movie, the script had actually existed before all of us, including Todd, had been attached. So this is the first script that utilizes our voices uniquely. Basically, you're building on the characters the audience has loved and also the characters we kind of formed in the first movie, so it was actually creatively easier for me as an actor this time around. All the hard work had been done in establishing these characters.

(2011, on director Todd Phillips) Todd gave me a career, and he's my favorite guy. He's family to me. We're bonded by our love of comedy and mayhem...I just trust everything about Todd Phillips, because all of my fame and success have been due to the first Hangover.