Simu Liu as Shang-Chi. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved
Simu Liu was so confident he was the right person to play Shang-Chi he boldly tweeted at Marvel Studios to let them know.
But when the Canadian actor landed the starring role in Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings – and became the first Asian lead in a Marvel superhero film – he admits he was more than a little nervous about joining such a big franchise.
“My nerves were sky high. I was an actor from Toronto, and I really had never allowed myself to imagine being a part of the MCU. I mean, it’s the craziest dream that someone can possibly dream,” says Liu during a recent global press conference for the film, which opens in theatres September 3.
For Liu, who previously starred in CBC’s Kim’s Convenience, the role also meant working alongside acting greats like Tony Leung, Michelle Yeoh and Sir Ben Kingsley.
“It was like imposter syndrome every single day. It was truly such a treat, and it was all I could do just not to mess it up, you know,” recalls Liu.
“When I was first cast, I did my final screen test with Nora (Lum/Awkwafina) and she did such a wonderful job of putting me at ease … and as I met more (of) the members of the cast like Tony and Michelle and Sir Ben, I mean, every day it was like waking up to another dream,” says Liu.
Whether this dream actually came about because of a tweet is something fans have been dying to know. It turns out so has Liu, who had the opportunity to ask Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios and a producer on the film, during the press conference.
“You think when you tweet at Marvel, you think it’s going to some 19-year-old intern with acne and … no one’s gonna read that. No one cares what I have to say. But maybe, you know, maybe they did?”
Fiege confirmed he did not see the tweet that was sent on December 3, 2018, shortly after the film was first announced.OK @Marvel, are we gonna talk or what #ShangChi
— Simu Liu (刘思慕) (@SimuLiu) December 3, 2018
“Unfortunately, Simu, it was not your tweeting. It was your acting ability, your constant professionalism, and then multiple reads and meetings that you did that got you the job,” says Fiege.
Fiege and director Destin Daniel Cretton also didn’t think casting director Sarah Finn saw the tweet.
“But I do think the universe saw that,” says Cretton.
“Then that’s a cosmic wonder,” adds Fiege.
“So, the narrative still holds true … speak it into the universe and it will find a way,” says Liu.
(L-R): Katy (Awkwafina) and Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) in Marvel Studios' Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Photo by Jasin Boland. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.When audiences first meet Shaun (Shang-Chi), he’s working as a parking valet in San Francisco with his best friend Katy (Awkwafina) and content to leave his past with his family behind him. But when a group of assassins unexpectedly shows up to steal a pendant his mother gave him, it leads him to Macau to warn his sister Xialing (newcomer Meng’er Zhang) she could be their next target. Drawn back into the world of the Ten Rings organization led by his father (Leung), Shang-Chi must confront his past and embrace his destiny to save the world.
“It’s a journey of self-discovery, of growing up, of learning how to finally deal with pain that he’s been running away from his entire life,” says Cretton.
“And that when he is finally able to look inside into his past and embrace good, bad, the joy, the pain, and accept it all as a part of himself, that’s when he finally steps into his big boy shoes … that’s kind of what we’re all doing as humans in some way or another.”
(L-R): Wenwu (Tony Leung), Xialing (Meng’er Zhang), Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) and Katy (Awkwafina) in Marvel Studios' Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Photo by Jasin Boland. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
The filmmakers say it was important to bring Shang-Chi into the Marvel Cinematic Universe and represent Asian culture.
“We wanted to do it for both of those reasons. To bring this specific character into the MCU, but just as importantly to bring, representation of another kind to this film,” says Fiege.
“I think what is extra relevant to the culture is that this is a Marvel film,” adds Cretton. “And if we were not putting Shang-Chi shoulder to shoulder with all the amazing other Marvel superheroes that we’ve come to love in the past, that would be, to me, a big disservice to the culture and the character.”
See Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings in Cineplex Theatres beginning September 3