Images via Instagram @simuliu & Wikipedia Commons
Well, Marvel has done it again. It’s no questions that Marvel Studios (and parent company Disney) sit at the top of Hollywood. Not only did Avengers: Endgame become the biggest movie of all time, but the movie juggernaut proved its worth in terms of uplifting talent.
We’ve seen time and time again that new or lightly recognized talent can become global sensations after being cast as leads or major supporting characters in Marvel Movies. Tom Hiddleston and Chris Hemsworth were relative unknowns before being cast in the MCU. In addition, small/local/indie names like Zendaya, Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chris Evans, Chadwick Boseman, and Scarlett Johansson gained household recognition because of their roles with Marvel.
Even the careers of well-known actors like Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Downey Jr. were given a boost or a complete 180 thanks to the films. Plus, Oscar winners and big-name talents like Brie Larson, Angelina Jolie, Mahershala Ali, Richard Madden, Salma Hayak, and more have joined the Marvel team.
And now, we get to see yet another actor go through the process of becoming an international sensation.
Simu Liu is no newcomer to Hollywood and the entertainment business. In fact, he’s been acting in projects since 2012. He’s mostly known for his work on Kim’s Convenience, Taken, and the mini-series Yappie.
The Chinese born actor moved to Canada when he was five years old. And he, at first, did not plan to become an actor. He first started working as an accountant, but then heard the call to go act.
As he said on Comic-Con’s stage after his casting was announced, “All I’ve ever wanted to do when I was growing was make [my parents] proud. What I’m trying to say is, I’m really happy I’m not a doctor. So, take that mom and dad.”
And make them proud, he surely will. While Simu Liu has recognition within the internet entertainment space and the Asian-American community of creators in Hollywood & Canada, the actor will now become a celebrated talent across the globe. And with Marvel Studos’s plan to diversify its heroes to better represent the global viewer base that got it to the top of movie-making, it looks like Liu is set.
Or as Marvel Studios head honcho Kevin Feige said at the Hall H panel, “He’ll be a household name soon enough.”
But if you’re excited to see Liu in the MCU, you’ll still have some time to wait as “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” hits theaters February 12, 2021.
