The Marvel Cinematic Universe unveiled one of its newest superheroes in Shang-Chi and the Legends of the Ten Rings with the actor Simu Liu who has been very vocal about his descent, movie, and team. However, he was not able to escape the Twitter cancel culture but this time, he fires back.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of Ten Rings made waves in Hollywood after bringing Asian representation into the MCU, keeping up with the promise of the franchise of diversification. However, the cruel truth is that being a public figure on social media has in it the various controversies which may be tantamount to attempts of taking them down from their newfound stardom.
In an interview with Independent, the Shang-Chi actor, Simu Liu, fires back with his experience on social media controversies like the cancel culture, "You don’t know if opinions are coming from real people, or if it’s a targeted attempt to bring you down... Being a public figure on today’s internet means being a lightning rod for people typing whatever they feel at any specific point in time."
Liu acknowledges the fact that there will always be those who would attempt to bring one person down and with the character limit on Twitter, having only 280 characters, he still has to speak out and try everything he can to get control of his truth, "What scares me is not having control over that narrative. My nature is to want to clarify, but then the nature of Twitter is to keep it short.”
Liu added, “Opinions are formed, accusations can be made, and then you only have 280 characters with which you can respond or choose not to.”
Related: Simu Liu Clarifies Why He Criticized Moon Knight's Ethan Hawke Mandarin Dialogue
Liu also made sure to stand his ground and keep his head high despite the unsolicited negativity on social media and be able to control his presence on the platform, “I don’t feel like I’m the hottest man in the world... but what I’m trying to be is a model of self-assuredness. The fun of being topless every once in a while is feeling like… yeah, I worked for this!”
Liu builds his confidence, being an example to others who struggle to find their voice or comfort in their own selves, “I deserve to feel good in my skin! And if it happens to shatter a couple of stereotypes along the way, then sure, why not?”
Following the release of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Simu Liu is yet to make another appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but given that he forms part of the fourth phase of the franchise, he could pop up anytime in any project connected to his character.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is currently streaming on Disney Plus.
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