We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story

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Oh, Sandra (23 May 2022). "Simu Liu Is on the 2022 TIME 100 List". Time. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022 . Retrieved 25 May 2022. On stage, Liu was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore Award in the Outstanding Ensemble category alongside his castmates in the 2016 Factory Theatre remount of the play Banana Boys. [60] Liu’s book begins with the call from Marvel to say that he has got the job as Shang-Chi, Marvel’s first Asian superhero. When he calls his parents, hoping they might share his excitement, that they might finally think all their sacrifices were worth it, his father’s reaction to the news, he writes, “sounds like someone’s just told him his dry cleaning would be ready on time”. They were just happy he had a job. His book is both funny and wry: “My parents didn’t have much to offer on the subject of coolness or puberty, other than that it was a totally meaningless diversion from the true purpose of childhood: getting into Harvard,” he writes. But it is also unflinching. The abuse, both physical and verbal, he suffers from his parents as a teenager is brutal – they beat and belittle him. Despite the opportunities “Kim’s Convenience” afforded, Liu noted in his June 2 Facebook criticism that he became “increasingly frustrated with the way” he and his character, Jung, were treated. Liu also claimed his and others’ attempts to boost the series’ authenticity with their own creative input were dismissed. According to Yoon, that resulted in “overtly racist” and “extremely culturally inaccurate” storylines. The star of Marvel’s first Asian superhero film, Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings, tells his own origin story of being a Chinese immigrant, his battles with cultural stereotypes and his own identity, becoming a TV star, and landing the role of a lifetime.

a b "KollabCast Episode 144 – Simu's Convenience w/ Simu Liu". Kollaboration . Retrieved 2 November 2017. Watch Homer Go Down a Conspiracy Hole as 'The Simpsons' Season 34 Opener Pays Homage to 'Don't F**k with Cats' (EXCLUSIVE)". 23 September 2022. DORA MAVOR MOORE AWARDS NOMINEES" (PDF). Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts . Retrieved 8 October 2016.

Simu Liu opens up about repairing his relationship with his immigrant parents after childhood trauma". 14 May 2022. The cultural gap between Liu and his parents is huge. Whereas his teenage years were spent worrying about girls and whether he would ever be in an ‘NSync-style boy band, his parents had grown up during China’s Cultural Revolution. His mother, as the eldest child, had been a brilliant student but was sent away to work in rural camps for two years along with millions of other “intellectual” urban teenagers. When the universities reopened, Liu’s parents both took the entrance exams – his father cramming for a few weeks, his mother studying by torchlight after a day working in the fields – and against huge competition, both passed. They met at university in Beijing, where they both studied engineering.

Del Rosario, Alexandra (12 December 2021). " Shang-Chi 's Simu Liu Talks "Super Power" Of Being "Unapologetically Asian" At Unforgettable Gala; Sandra Oh, John Cho & More Receive Honors". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021 . Retrieved 6 September 2022. Fresh Off the Boat': 'Kim's Convenience's' Simu Liu Drops by 100th". Entertainment Tonight. 29 March 2019 . Retrieved 4 November 2019. Later in 2015, Liu was cast in his first main role as Jung Kim in the CBC Television sitcom Kim's Convenience, [18] a TV adaptation of the play of the same name. It remains his most notable television success to date, with the series being nominated for and winning multiple awards internationally, including Best Comedy Series at the 2018 Canadian Screen Awards and "Most Popular Foreign Drama" at the 2019 Seoul International Drama Awards. Liu starred in the series until its conclusion in 2021.Kim's Convenience star Simu Liu thanks his immigrant parents for his Canadian life". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved 20 September 2019. We Were Dreamers is a story about growing up between cultures, finding your family, and becoming the master of your own extraordinary circumstance.

In this honest, inspiring and relatable memoir, Simu Liu chronicles his family's journey from China to the bright lights of Hollywood with wit and humour. Ansari, Sadiya (19 August 2021). "Simu Liu is on the cusp of superstardom. But that isn't his end game". Maclean's.Ahsan, Sadaf (10 June 2021). "Simu Liu offers sneak peek at upcoming memoir". Etalk . Retrieved 12 September 2021. The book is also a reconciliation story to an extent: Liu’s parents left him in the care of his grandparents in China as a toddler, while they went to Canada to set up a better future for the family. By the time Liu reunited with his family in Toronto, he was four years old and, as the publisher notes explain, “emotionally distant and difficult to relate to… separated by culture, language and values.” Liu was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award and an ACTRA Award in 2017 for his work in Blood and Water. [4] He, along with his Kim's Convenience castmates, won the ACTRA Award for Outstanding Ensemble in 2017. Liu and his castmates were nominated for the same award in 2018 and 2019. Kim's Convenience also won the award for Best Comedy Series at the 2018 Canadian Screen Awards. [59]