Simu Liu reveals he was rejected from ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ for not having “the ‘It’ factor”

Simu Liu has revealed that he once auditioned for multiple roles in Crazy Rich Asians but was turned away for not having “the ‘It’ factor”.

• READ MORE: ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ review: martial arts blockbuster kickstarts Marvel’s next phase

During a recent episode of the How To Fail podcast with Elizabeth Day, Liu shared that he auditioned “four times” for different roles for the hit 2018 film. Listen to the episode below.

He first auditioned for the lead role of Nick Young, which later went to Henry Goulding. He then tried out for the role of Colin Khoo, Young’s best friend. After Chris Pang was cast in the role, Liu then tried his hand at the role of Michael Teo, who would later be played by Pierre Png.

“I just remember being devastated at the time, I was putting so much on the line, coming out to L.A. and I think I kind of expected things to happen faster than it actually did,” Liu told Elizabeth Day.

Liu recalled asking his agent to get an explanation as to why he missed out on the roles because he originally received “really positive feedback”.

“Through some sort of broken telephone, whether it had gone through a studio exec or a casting director before it got to our side, we got, ‘Well Simu doesn’t have the x-factor. The ‘It’ factor,’” the Kim’s Convenience star said. “And that was just such a crushing blow for me.”

Liu added: “It felt like someone was telling me that I just wasn’t good enough, that I just wasn’t likeable. I didn’t have that thing that made people want to watch it. It was at a time that was very difficult for me, I was trying to figure out whether I could be the lead character or whether I could only be a supporting character for my entire career.”

“It forced me to take a step back and realize that maybe I wanted it too badly,” the actor said. “Like maybe I was too desperate and that desperation was showing in my work. There had to be an element of confidence in what I was doing and self-assuredness.”

Liu – who would go on to star in the titular role in Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – shared two pages from his recently released memoir on Twitter on Sunday (May 22) that recount the ordeal.

Most Asian actors/actresses remember auditioning for Crazy Rich Asians. It was so exciting! My experience led to some really meaningful feedback being shared about my work and craft.

In the end, that movie was PERFECTLY cast just the way it was. And paved way for all of us! pic.twitter.com/ROtaLB3L3l

— Simu Liu (刘思慕) (@SimuLiu) May 22, 2022

“When Crazy Rich Asians was released in 2018, I was in a far better place mentally and was able to fully celebrate the importance of the moment. It was a resounding victory for Asian American representation, featuring an ensemble of actors who were perfectly cast,” Liu wrote in his book.

In February, it was announced that Simu Liu has been cast in writer-director Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Barbie film opposite Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling.

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