Simu Liu Decided To Star In Margot Robbie’s Barbie Because His Agent Believed It's One Of The Best Scripts He'd Ever Read

Simu Liu really, really, really trusts his agent.

When it was announced last year that the star of Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is joining the cast of Barbie, Greta Gerwig’s live-action take on the iconic doll, it seemed a little odd. Curious minds want to know: What attracted Liu to the project?

Turns out it has zilch to do with him being a fan (he’s not), but because an agent — a junior one, at that — at Liu’s agency told the actor that it was the best script he’d ever read.

“He literally said this verbatim,” the 33-year-old Chinese Canadian told GQ UK in a dim sum restaurant in London (where Barbie has been shooting since March). “He was like, ‘If I could stake my career on any one script, it’s the Barbie script. I really think you should do it.’”

The Barbie script is by Gerwig and her partner Noah Baumbach, both have written Oscar-nominated screenplays — Gerwig for Lady Bird, Baumbach for Marriage Story and The Squid and the Whale.

Considering the pedigree, it sounds like a shoo-in. It’s either that or the paycheck was really, really, really generous.

In the interview, Liu also mentioned how he met Gerwig in person after he sent her a self-tape audition. According to Liu, the Little Women director has a thing for “watching men dance because it’s such an expression of artistry you’re not used to seeing from typical men.” Liu then shared with her his dance history with a competitive hip-hop team. “She audibly guffawed, she giggle-screamed — and then I got the part,” Liu said. No word on what exactly that role is but it involves — you guessed it —  a lot of dancing.

Barbie — which Liu described as “wild “and “incredibly unique” — stars Margot Robbie as the title character while Ryan Gosling plays Barbie’s boyfriend Ken. It’s slated to open in Singapore cinemas July 20, 2023.

Liu’s other projects include Arthur the King, an adventure flick headlined by Mark Wahlberg, the sci-fi thriller Hello Stranger, the romantic drama One True Loves, and the Shang-Chi sequel.

You can read more about Liu’s GQ interview here.

Photos: TPG News/Click Photos, Warner Bros Singapore/Instagram