4 Reasons We’re Currently Swooning Over Up-and-Coming Actor Simu Liu
This post is also available in: Español Русский Українська
Actor Simu Liu is on the rise. The Chinese-Canadian actor, born on April 19, 1989, is a hot new man in Hollywood. But what most people don’t know is that this actor-on-the-rise has been rising for some time now. Liu originally didn’t want to be an actor, as he planned to follow his parents’ wishes for him to become an accountant. He even studied finance at Ivey Business School in Canada for two years. But the call to act kept coming at Simu Liu, and he eventually answered it.
But which projects helped actor Simu Liu get to where he is now? How is he on the brink of becoming a household name? And, what makes him our latest swoon-worthy stud? How about a quick list to keep you in the know.
Here are four reasons we’re currently swooning over actor Simu Liu:
1. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the 10 Rings (2021)
First, we have the project that will surely make Simu Liu a universal star. The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 4 is a huge step forward in terms of representation, including more black superheroes, the first openly gay superhero and the MCU’s first Asian superhero.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the 10 Rings will star Liu as a martial-arts-based superhero with super strength (and sometimes the ability to copy and multiply himself). This film, which will release in September 2021, will make Liu famous not only in the United States but internationally, and we can’t wait for the obligatory shirtless scene.
2. Kim’s Convenience (2016-2021)
Here’s what initially put actor Simu Liu on the industry’s map. The sitcom follows a Korean-Canadian family that runs a convenience store in the Moss Park neighborhood of Toronto. Liu plays estranged son Jung, who tries to make it on his own.
Not only is Jung’s storyline compelling for any young millennial who can relate to the desire to break free from their parents and tackle adulthood, but Liu was unafraid to be viewed as sexy while doing it. That character is regularly seen with his shirt off, and we are thankful for that.
3. Asian Bachelorette 2 (2018)
Simu Liu is a dynamic actor who’s not only worked in film and television but on web projects, too. Liu made a guest appearance in the viral video “Asian Bachelorette 2” with popular YouTube channel Wong Fu Productions. The parody video depicts what would happen if the reality dating competition show The Bachelorette only had Asian male contestants. The video is full of goofy humor and shirtless men. Again, thankfully, Liu is one of them.
4. AAPI Advocacy
But maybe even more important than his past projects, actor Simu Liu is also vocal on social issues. (And social media; he posts witty tweets on a regular basis.) Advocacy and looking out for the Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community important to him. In the past he’s bought out theaters and offered free tickets for AAPI-focused films like The Farewell and has advocated for AAPI rights.
“When Crazy Rich Asians came out, I did not necessarily go out and be like, ‘I want to get in the headlines for a movie that I’m not in!’” he told NBC News in 2018. “But then my publicist would be like, ‘You got a call from the Canadian Associated Press. You got a call from this place, from that place.’ It was always about Crazy Rich Asians. They wanted somebody ‘of that persuasion’ to comment on it. It piqued something in me where I was like, ‘I should be supporting this. I should be leaning into this.’ So a cast member [Andrew Phung of Kim’s Convenience] and I publicized the screening we were going to and we ended up selling out that theater.”
And as the U.S. has witnessed a rise in hate crimes against the AAPI community, Liu has been a vocal advocate for stopping anti-Asian hate.
“Pledging to donate $25,000 to AAPI-focused charities and nonprofits, and families of victims of the Atlanta shootings,” he recently tweeted. “A huge heartfelt THANK YOU to the grassroots organizers and on-the-ground reporters who are shining a spotlight during these dark times.”
What a man. What an actor. What a human being.
