Bentley Names Michelle Yeoh as Global Brand Ambassador
Bentley has named Oscar-winning actor and producer Michelle Yeoh as a global brand ambassador, just weeks after it revealed the Torcal, its first fully electric vehicle.
Bentley has a new face for its electric era, and she does her own stunts. The Crewe brand has named actor and producer Michelle Yeoh as a global brand ambassador. The news comes just weeks after Bentley revealed the Torcal, its first fully electric vehicle.
Bentley announced the appointment on 13 October, together with a portrait of Yeoh by Greg Williams, the brand’s External Creative Director. Bentley says the role formalises a relationship that already existed rather than starting a new one.
A Family Connection to Crewe
That link runs through Yeoh’s husband, Jean Todt. According to Bentley, his collection includes a 1965 Continental S3, a 2019 Mulsanne and a 2025 Flying Spur Speed 1st Edition. That’s six decades of Bentley in one household.
There’s a local tie as well. Yeoh was born in Malaysia and moved to the UK as a teenager to train in ballet. She later studied Creative Arts with Drama in Cheshire, about 15 miles from Bentley’s home in Crewe.
From Hong Kong Action to an Oscar
Yeoh built her career in Hong Kong during the 1980s and became one of Asia’s most successful actors. She was known for doing her own stunts, which few brand ambassadors can claim.
She has now appeared in more than fifty films. Highlights include:
- The Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies
- The Oscar-winning Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
- Memoirs of a Geisha, Crazy Rich Asians and Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
- The TV series Star Trek: Discovery and the musical Wicked
In 2023, she became the first Asian woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress, for Everything Everywhere All at Once. Her latest work includes The Surgeon, Blade Runner 2099 and The Wandering Earth III.
Why the Timing Matters
The timing is deliberate. Bentley calls the Torcal a once-in-a-generation model line, and it wants a globally known name to help carry that message.
Yeoh’s statement focuses on transformation. She said she has always been drawn to characters who change without losing who they are, and that Bentley has done the same. Marketing Director Ben Whattam pointed to her status as an action star and Bond icon as a match for the brand’s performance image.
What It Means for Bentley
Announcements like this rarely tell us much about the cars, and this one is no exception. It includes no new Torcal details, no pricing and no specifications.
It does show the strategy, though. Until now, every Bentley has used combustion power in some form, and the first fully electric model has to convince buyers who know the brand that way. A well-known star whose family garage spans 1965 to 2025 helps Bentley argue that the Torcal belongs in that line. In the end, though, buyers will judge the car itself, not the portrait.
