This movie can bring empowerment to so many kids that have never felt that
LAURA HARDING talks to Simu Liu about making history as the star of Marvel’s first Asian superhero movie
SIMU LIU has not slept that well recently. But it’s not starring in the latest Marvel blockbuster that has kept him up at night – it was the cabin lights on a recent flight.
“Every time I’ve ever been in an aeroplane, the moment that I fall asleep is when the lights come on,” he laughs good-humouredly.
The Chinese-Canadian actor, previously best known for his role in the sitcom Kim’s Convenience, is just off a plane from Los Angeles to London but looks fresh as a daisy.
“Thankfully, it did mean that I was sufficiently tired when we were landing and then I just toughed it out for a few hours and then had a beautiful rest, so it all worked out.”
This is indeed a relief because the 32-year-old is going to need all the sleep he can get when his film launches in cinemas and propels him into the big time.
Simu plays the title role in Marvel’s Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings, about a young martial arts master in denial about his vocation, who must confront the past and the family ties he thought he left behind when he became a valet driver in San Francisco, going by the name of Shaun.
“I think what’s immediately obvious watching the film is the action, because it’s a Marvel movie and those scenes will definitely stand out,” he says. “But what I was really pleased about was just how much attention was given to those little dramatic moments, and I think those really are what anchor the film, in something that’s grounded, and ultimately human.
“And I think that’s so important for a movie about superheroes, is that you find the humanity, and you find the smallness and the intimacy.”
Simu makes history as the first Asian superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a fact that “feels like a long time coming” to director Destin Daniel Cretton, whose previous movies include Short Term 12, Just Mercy and The Glass Castle.
“I’m 42 now. And when I was a kid, it was something that I’ve never had. I’ve never had a superhero that I could project myself into,” says Destin. “The closest thing I had was Spider-Man, because he had a mask on so that I can imagine that I was in there. And I guess that’s a long time to wait.
“It’s a weird thing, as a film-maker who is an Asian-American, I grew up in Hawaii surrounded by a very eclectic group of Asian-Americans from all over East Asia, and I didn’t really realise the hole that I had in my childhood until recently, until I was working on this movie.
“It became more and more important to get this right.
“I have two sons at home now and I definitely had them in mind when we were creating this character. They’re too young to watch this movie, but one day, when they do, I wanted to make sure that the themes and what Shang-Chi represents, the struggle that he’s going through, the things he overcomes, the values he ends up holding on to at the end of the movie, that they would all be things that I would hope my son would benefit from.”
Simu doesn’t take this responsibility lightly and is aware how many eyes, particularly of young people, will be on him.
“It’s a privilege, it’s an honour, it’s overwhelming, it’s all of those things,” he says. “But there is also a joy that undercuts all of that.
“I think it’s the joy that I try to lean into whenever I start feeling all of those feelings of anxiety and the overwhelming nature of it all.
“It’s just the idea that this movie can bring that sense of pride and empowerment to so many kids that have never felt that, I think it’s truly very exciting, and hopefully is the first of many.”
He is also aware that the film is coming out against the backdrop of a recent spike in attacks against Asian people in America, with activists saying incidents are often linked to rhetoric blaming victims for the spread of Covid19.
“I think it can be difficult, in the environment of the Asian hate that we’ve been reading about, for an Asian person who is watching all this happen and unfolding in the world, for them to feel proud of themselves, and to feel like they can be balanced on their two feet walking down the street,” Simu says.
“For myself, I’ve felt most of my life like I’ve had to apologise for my existence, like I have always been anxious taking up space in a room.
“And I think just having the background of all that Asian hate just exacerbates that feeling.
“What I really want this movie to do is to be a celebration and a joy in our culture and our heritage and our language. And it’s something to show the world that we’re not afraid, and hopefully it’s to show ourselves not to be afraid either.”
Now both Simu and Destin are hopeful that plenty more films like theirs will follow, and soon it will not be remarkable for an Asian star to have super powers.
“I get that we’re the first in a lot of ways, but also we’re giving the world so much more than just one Asian-American superhero,” Simu says. “We have so many bad**s heroes and heroines in our movie, and pretty much all of them are Asian, and I think that’s just beautiful.
“It just gives you so many different characters, so many different perspectives and access points and each of whom are, I think, extremely, incredibly rich and textured and nuanced.
“I think that’s the beauty of having movies like this told through a distinctly Asian-American lens, that our stories are Asian and it’s really not just the one, it’s not a token character, it’s everybody.” Destin agrees, saying: “I feel very lucky to be in a time in this industry where people in power like Kevin Feige (the Marvel chief ) and this studio are realising that we need to start telling more stories that reflect the world around us and all of the wonderful cultures and faces that are our brothers and sisters.
“I think that this will continue. I hope it continues more rapidly than it has in the past. Our movie is more scrutinised now but we are number one, the first one through the door, and hopefully that door stays open so there’s two, three, four, five, six... until it’s normal.”
Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings is in cinemas now
I’ve never had a superhero that I could project myself into
Destin Daniel Cretton