We have officially got a new MCU crush.
This week, Marvel debuted the trailer for the upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which introduces a new hero into the next phase of the MCU. Shang-Chi is known in the comics as the Master of Kung Fu. He was trained from childhood to become an assassin for the Ten Rings organization, but left to live a normal life in San Francisco. In the movie, he's forced to confront that past and use his martial arts skills to do things like fight off bad guys on speeding city busses.
Shang-Chi stars some familiar faces like Awkwafina, Michelle Yeoh, Tony Leung and comedian Ronny Chieng, but it's star Simu Liu who's currently got our attention, and not just because he's handsome as hell.
Liu rose to some fame on the beloved Canadian comedy Kim's Convenience, which just recently ended after five seasons. He played the son of two immigrant convenience store owners, and now he's playing Marvel's newest, most excited superhero. And we're obsessed.
First, there's the fact that Liu once just straight up asked Marvel if he could be a superhero. Back in July 2014, long before Kim's Convenience even premiered, he tweeted about how the company needed an Asian American hero.
Then, when Shang-Chi was announced in 2018, he tweeted again, asking Marvel, "Are we gonna talk or what?"
The actor told EW that he never really expected anything to come of those tweets.
"What was definitely not going through my head was, 'Hey, I'm going to tweet Marvel and they're going to get back to me, and I'm going to get this role,'' he said. He was then invited to audition, and by July 2019, he was able to respond to his own tweets with a couple of succinct reactions: "LOL" and "Well s--t."
Two years later, Liu is still getting one-upped by Marvel on Twitter. He thought he was celebrating his birthday on April 19 by gifting fans with a poster for the movie.
"Whoever said that you could only RECEIVE presents on your birthday? Today, I'm giving you your VERY FIRST LOOK at the teaser poster for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings!!" he wrote. "Coming to theatres September 3rd (trailer drops in a few weeks). WE'RE ALMOST THERE, PEOPLE!!!!"
Marvel then decided to forget about "a few weeks" and released the trailer just a few minutes later in honor of their new star's 32nd birthday.
Ever since, Liu has spent his time trying to convince his dog that he's fancy.
"This Marvel superhero still can't get his dog to stop hogging the bed," he tweeted. He also posted a video to his Instagram stories in which he tried to get his dogs excited about the trailer.
"Daddy's superhero trailer is out," he tells one pup as the other just gives him an uninterested look. "Daddy's a superhero! Doesn't anybody care?"
"Well screw you!" he says when it's clear they don't care, but even their bored faces are still adorable. "I'm just kidding."
Little do those dogs know, their dad is about to have Marvel money, and they're about to be living their best life possible, if they aren't already. Please, just read Liu's post about rescuing his dog, Chopa, from the streets of Dominican Republic and try to keep your heart from bursting.
We just can't help but swoon over a much-deserving actor living out their dream, spoiling their pets and doing their own stunts, and we can't wait to see where this new love of ours takes us as Shang-Chi makes his debut.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings premieres in theaters on Sept. 3, 2021.