‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ star on turning 26, woman power

Chloe Bennet

“Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” star Chloe Bennet, ecstatic about her birthday, thanked fans for a surprise in an Instagram Stories video.
“I’m just so overwhelmed with how amazing and sweet you guys are,” said the actress, who turned 26 last week. “I have a birthday hangover from a lot of alcohol and love. You guys are so f**king sweet…so many donations to Community Empowerment, which is the medical clinic my mom and I run in Haiti.”

Bennet, who plays the Asian-American superagent Daisy Johnson in the series, recently praised her female costars (Ming-Na Wen, Natalia Cordova-Buckley, Elizabeth Henstridge) and producer Maurissa Tancharoen, in a post celebrating woman power and 100 episodes of the Marvel show. “S.H.I.E.L.D.” is a spinoff of the first “Avengers” film.

“Our show has always honestly represented women. Not because strong female characters ‘are totally in right now,’ but because it’s truthful and real. These women are inspiring in every sense of the word. On and off camera, they are intelligent, charismatic, hilarious, kind, fierce, flawed and perfect all at the same time.”

She advised young ladies to find their own empowering “tribe,” adding, “Here’s to powerful women—may we know them, may we raise them, may we be them.”—OLIVER PULUMBARIT