Zhang Ziyi polishes her English skills in New York

Zhang Ziyi

Zhang Ziyi studied at one China's top theater schools. Now the star of "Memoirs of a Geisha" has gone to one of the best in the West: Juilliard School in New York.

The young actress just finished polishing her English delivery skills by taking voice and dialect classes at Juilliard, her manager Ling Lucas told The Associated Press in an e-mail Tuesday.

Lucas also confirmed Zhang has a voice role in the upcoming animated movie, "TMNT," based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon characters. The movie will be released in March 30 in the United States.

Zhang plays Karai, the new leader of the Foot Ninja Clan, Lucas said.

The actress will fly to Winnipeg, Canada, later this week to start filming the crime thriller "Horsemen," featuring Dennis Quaid, the manager said.

In "Horsemen," Quaid plays a detective who discovers a personal connection to the suspects in a group of serial killings that are linked to the biblical Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Zhang plays a young woman who's crucial to solving the case.

Zhang studied at China's Central Academy of Drama in Beijing. She made her name in Chinese films like "The Road Home" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" before moving on to Hollywood. Along with "Memoirs," she has appeared in "Rush Hour 2."