Simu Liu is slamming Hollywood for the “appalling” lack of Asian representation in film.
“Put some asians in literally anything right now,” the Marvel actor, 36, wrote on Threads this week. “The amount of backslide in our representation onscreen is f**king appalling.”
“Studios think we’re risky,” Liu added.
The Canadian actor then named multiple Asian-led films, including “Minari,” “Crazy Rich Asians,” “Past Lives,” “Farewell,” “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” and his own Marvel flick, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” that all succeeded at the box office.
“Every single one a financial success,” Liu stated. “No asian actor has ever lost a studio even close to 100 million dollars but a white dude will lose 200 million TWICE and roll right into the next tentpole lead.”
“We’re fighting a deeply prejudiced system,” Liu added. “And most days it SUCKS.”
The “Barbie” star’s rant was in response to a post from another user who urged Hollywood to “put more Asian men in romantic lead roles.”
The post also featured screenshots of other Asian actor’s comments about not getting equal opportunities.
“The Good Place” star Manny Jacinto was quoted saying he’s only being offered “dad roles” after starring in “Freakier Friday,” while “Lost” alum Daniel Dae Kim claimed that he’s never been cast as a lead in a rom-com in the 30 years he’s been in the industry.
In another screenshot from the post, “American Pie” and “Harold & Kumar” star John Cho said that he also rarely gets rom-com offers.
Liu has called out Hollywood’s diversity problem before.
In 2023, he replied to a HuffPost article that claimed he was getting the “bulk of Asian male roles in Hollywood” over other actors from his community.
“Way to attempt to put us against one another,” Liu replied to the Facebook post at the time. “What ‘bulk’ of roles are you referring to? Are there movies I’m in that I’m not aware of? Do you really think that there is a quota of ‘Asian male roles’ that is a zero sum game?”
“Every thing I have taken post Shang-Chi was not written Asian,” he added. “We’ve been able to reshape stories to get more representation onscreen. Get your facts straight.”
Liu also got vocal in 2021 after then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek called the release plan for “Shang-Chi” — which made over $430 million at the worldwide box office — an “interesting experiment.”
“We are the underdog; the underestimated. We are the ceiling-breakers,” the actor clapped back.
“We are the celebration of culture and joy that will persevere after an embattled year,” he added. “We are the surprise.”
