Simu Liu, a Canadian actor, turned his devotion to acting in the early 2010s after quitting his job as an accountant at Deloitte. Widely popular on the international platform for portraying Jung Kim in the TV sitcom Kim's Convenience (2016-21), the China-born, Ontario-raised actor added further prominence on-screen, being the first-ever Asian to be cast in the Marvel superhero film.
The 2017 ACTRA Award winner portrays the protagonist Shang-Chi in phase four Marvel movie, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Probably, his professional career has been an open book to all, but curiosity about his personal life remains unveiled. Let's get through all about Liu in detail.
How Old Is Shang-Chi Star Simu Liu In 2022? Details About His Age & Height
Born on April 19, 1989, in Harbin, China, the Blood and Water star grew up in Erin Mills, an area of Mississauga, Ontario, as his family moved to Canada when was only 5. Hence, Liu holds Canadian citizenship.
CAPTION: Simu Liu and his parent' Zhenning and Zheng SOURCE: Instagram@simuliu The only child of Chinese-Canadian parents (father Zhenning and mother Zheng), Although he doesn't open up much about his family but frequently posts pictures of his father & mother on Instagram.
Since both of his parents went to study at Queen's University in Ontario, Canada, for his first five years, the actor lived with his grandparents. As of 2022, Simu Liu is 33 years old and has a height of 5 feet 11 inches (180 cm).
Liu Is A Graduate With Honours in Business Administration From IBS
After completing high school at the University of Toronto Schools in 2011, Simu enrolled at Ivey Business School at the University of Western Ontario and graduated with an Honours Business Administration (HBA) degree.
Subsequently, he worked as an associate for Deloitte & Touche LLC but found a passion & later pursued a career in acting after a year in the firm.
Although the Canadian TV star, now with wings in the film industry, turned professional in 2011, it was until 2012 that he made his on-screen debut as a guest cast in Nikita. In 2013, he was an extra in the box-office hit Pacific Rim. Earlier, he worked as a stuntman.
Simu Is The First-Ever Asian Superhero In Marvel Cinematics Universe
From TV screen to Marvel-film, Liu's fame soared on the international platform shortly after he won the casting of the lead, Shang-Chi in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Back in December 2018, the actor made a Tweet showing his interest in the Marvel Phase Four movie, and after seven months, finally it turned into a reality.
Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige reportedly approached him on a call, though he didn't know of the Tweet earlier. What a coincidence!!
CAPTION: Liu became the first Asian to portray a Marvel superhero; played Shang-Chi in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings SOURCE: Instagram@simuliu Thus, he became the first Asian ever to portray Superhero in the lead Marvel film; although Benedict Wong worked in Dr. Strange starring Benedict Cumberbatch, he was in the assisting role. Moreover, in May 2021, after a decade since Jet Li in 2010, Simu Liu became the first East Asian man to cover Men's Health magazine in over a decade.
The film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings was released on September 3, 2021, co-starring Awkwafina, Fala Chen, Florian Munteanu, Benedict Wong, Michelle Yeoh, and Tony Leung.
From Breakthrough In Kim's Convenience To Becoming The First Asian Superhero- What Is Simu's Net Worth In 2022?
As Liu got a lead in the Marvel universe film, which we already know is one of the career boosts for multi-millionaire Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark, the Iron Man), eyes are set on the Chinese-born's payroll and fortune. Online sources estimate that Simu Liu has a net worth of $15 million as of 2021.
Similarly, according to sources, Liu's fortune has reportedly grown by $4 million making him worth $19 million as of 2022.
Many believe that it came as an assistant after a massive salary from the MCU film. A decade ago, when Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston were cast for the Thor franchise, some magazines even took the point to criticize. Still, now, we can't imagine anyone else taking the role perfectly while their payroll surged significantly.
CAPTION: Chinese-born Canadian actor Liu has a $19 million net worth in 2022 SOURCE: Instagram@simuliu Although not disclosed, the salary of Simu Liu from Shang-Chi is alleged to be in the millions.
Let's take a reference from Marvel heroes, Scarlett Johansson (as Black Widow), Robert Downey Jr. (as Iron-Man), and Chris Evans (as Captain America), who first saw $400K, $300K & $500K respectively for their first Marvel film. And by Avengers: End Game, the paycheck turned to $15 million, $35 million & $75 million, respectively.
As for his salary from Kim's Convenience, the Canadian actor has revealed that the casts were working at a super low rate despite the TV sitcom's rating sky-rocketing after the first season.
Liu's Breakthrough Series Kim's Convenience Ended After 5 Seasons
The Yappie actor was the main cast, Jung Kim, in the Canadian TV sitcom Kim's Convenience (2016-21), winning an ACTRA Award for the role. The sitcom concluded on April 13, 2021, after 5 seasons, totaling 65 episodes.
Notable casts in the series were Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Jean Yoon, Andrea Bang, Andrew Phung, and Nicole Power. Throughout his time in the show, he also worked in Slasher: Guilty Party, Bad Blood, and Fresh Off the Boat.
Are Liu And Kim's Convenience co-star Tina Jung Dating?
Although the 33-year-old is yet to confirm if he is dating actually, online sources took a step ahead to allege that he is in a relationship. His alleged girlfriend is none other than his Kim's Convenience co-star Tina Jung, who played the recurring cast, Jeanie Park. She is a graduate of the Acting Conservatory at York University.
Back in 2016, the dating allegations began to take place as they worked together on many projects. Moreover, in 2017, Simu posted a picture with Jung; the same year, the duo co-wrote and produced the short film Meeting Mommy.
CAPTION: Simu Liu and his alleged girlfriend Tina Jung SOURCE: Twitter@SimuLiu In October 2019, when Liu made a post dedicated to his husky (who died a year earlier) on his Instagram (@simuliu, 2.5M followers in 2022), the Korean-Canadian actress also made a similar post, indicating they shared the pet. Also, it strengthened the claims that the two were dating.
The actor is active on Twitter (@SimuLiu) with more than 912K followers, his Instagram account (@simuliu) has over 2.6M followers and his TikTok has over 1.9M followers as of April 2022.