Simu Liu
Birthdate: April 19, 1989 (37 Years Old)
Birthplace: Harbin, China
Simu Liu is one of the most successful Asian/North American actors, appearing in the lead and supporting roles in U.S. and Canadian television and cinema, and making his eye-catching breakthrough by starring in the title role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021), directed and co-written (with Dave Callahan and Andrew Lanham) by Destin Daniel Cretton, co-starring Awkwafina, Meng’er Zhang, Fala Chen, Florian Monteanu, Benedict Wong, Michelle Yeoh, Ben Kingsley, and Tony Leung, and released by Disney to a good return of $432 million (against a $200 million budget) and accolades for expanding the Marvel movie universe to include Asian superheroes; and then Liu returned as a star, again with director/writer Cretton in Disney/Marvel’s provisionally titled Untitled Shang-Chi Sequel (date to be announced), co-starring Zhang.
Liu co-starred in director/producer Andy Fickman’s comedy-drama, One True Loves (2023), co-starring Phillipa Soo and Luke Bracey, and released in a narrow theatrical window before a digital release by The Avenue. Liu co-starred in the Canadian sci-fi thriller, Simulant (2023), with Robbie Amell, Jordana Brewster, Alicia Sanz, and Sam Worthington under April Mullen’s direction, and released in Canada by Mongrel Media and in the U.S. by Vertical.
Liu landed a comedy role in his first blockbuster project, playing one of the “rival” Kens in filmmaker Greta Gerwig’s acclaimed Barbie (2023), starring Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Michael Cera, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, and Will Ferrell, and released by Warner Bros. to a spectacular return of $1.44 billion. Liu co-starred with Mark Wahlberg and Juliet Rylance in the adventure man-and-his-dog movie, Arthur the King (2024), with Nathalie Emmanuel, Ali Suliman, and Paul Guilfoyle under Simon Cellan Jones’s direction, and released by Lionsgate for a good $41 million box-office.
Simu Liu co-starred with Woody Harrelson in director Alex Parkinson’s dramatized version of his documentary feature, Last Breath (2025), with Finn Cole, Cliff Curtis, and Djimon Hounsou, and released in wide pattern by Focus Features/Entertainment Film Distributors/FilmNation Entertainment. Liu then stepped up as star and a lead producer with Neal H. Moritz of the live-action feature adaptation of United Front Games’s action-adventure video game, Sleeping Dogs (date to be announced).
Personal life
Simu Liu was born in Harbin, China, and was raised by his parents Zhenning and Zheng Liu, and his grandparents in Harbin. He followed his parent to Kingston and Mississauga, Ontario, where he spent most of his childhood and teen years. Liu attended and graduated from Sydenham Public School, and then attended the University of Toronto Schools. Liu majored in Business Administration at the University of Western Ontario’s Ivey Business School. Liu’s height is 5’ 11”. Liu’s estimated net worth is $4 million.
Simu Liu Movies
Actor
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Previous (11)
- 2025 |
Last Breath
asDave Yuasa
A true story that follows seasoned deep-sea divers as they battle the raging elements to rescue their crew mate trapped hundreds of feet below the ocean's surface.
- 2024 |
Arthur the King
asLeo
An adventure racer adopts a stray dog named Arthur to join him in an epic endurance race.
- 2023 |
- 2023 |
- -- | as Sam
- -- | as Shaun
- -- | as Xu Shang-Chi
- -- | as Shang-Chi
- -- | as Xu Shang-Chi
- -- | as Dad
- -- | as Shang-Chi
Facts About Simu Liu
Memoir: Simu Liu published his memoir, We Were Dreamers, in 2022, describing his family’s desperate life in China during the Cultural Revolution and their method of “tiger parenting.”
Influential: Liu was one of Time magazine’s 100 “most influential artists in the world” in 2022.
Career Change: Simu Liu was laid off from his job as an accountant, and took a major career switch by pursuing double careers in acting and stunt performing, which initially resulted in a rift with his parents until they later reconciled.
