The new Street Fighter movie brings a fresh take on the classic characters from Capcom’s video game franchise. Among the cast highlights is Callina Liang, the Canadian actress cast as Chun-Li, one of the series’ most popular and recognizable characters.
Known for her work in Presence, directed by Steven Soderbergh, and Tell Me Everything, Liang takes on one of the biggest projects of her career. To bring the iconic fighter to the big screen, the actress underwent intensive physical training that included martial arts, weightlifting, and studying Chun-Li’s signature moves from the video games.
Who Is Callina Liang?
Callina Liang is a Canadian actress born in Vancouver who spent part of her childhood and teenage years in different countries. She grew up between Beijing, Sydney, and Singapore, an experience that also helped shape her artistic and cultural background.
While studying in Singapore, Liang attended the Australian International School, where she excelled in drama. She later studied performance at LASALLE College of the Arts, an arts institution in Singapore.
Before establishing herself as an actress, Liang also created content for TikTok as a teenager. Her interest in acting, however, began much earlier, when she discovered that theater offered a way to overcome language difficulties after transferring to an English-speaking school.
In an interview with Cero Magazine, the actress explained that theater became a space where she could express herself freely. At 17, she left high school to study performance at LASALLE College of the Arts and also attended summer courses in New York City.
Callina Liang made her professional television debut in 2022, playing Mei in the first season of the British teen drama Tell Me Everything, which aired on ITVX.
She later appeared in Apple’s science fiction series Foundation, playing a younger version of Rue Corintha. These roles helped build her résumé before she landed more prominent parts in feature films.
One of Callina Liang’s most significant projects before Street Fighter was Presence, a film directed by Steven Soderbergh.
In the movie, Liang plays Chloe Payne, a teenager who moves into a seemingly ordinary house with her family, only for supernatural events to begin unfolding. The film’s distinctive approach lies in how the story is told: the events are presented from the perspective of the supernatural presence itself.
Presence premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and featured Liang alongside actors including Lucy Liu, Chris Sullivan, and Julia Fox. The film helped raise her international profile.
Callina Liang Takes on the Role of Chun-Li
Callina Liang was announced as Chun-Li in June 2025, joining the cast of the new Street Fighter movie. Capcom confirmed the casting, also announcing Andrew Koji as Ryu and Noah Centineo as Ken Masters.
The casting brings together acting ability and physical preparation. Even before taking on the role, Liang had already expressed an interest in action characters and had experience with various martial arts disciplines.
In an interview with British Vogue, published in July 2024, Liang revealed that she wanted to play an action character in the style of John Wick. At the time, she was already practicing boxing and training in kung fu and silat, while expressing interest in roles that demanded greater physical preparation.
Playing Chun-Li required specialized physical preparation. In the games, the character is known for her powerful leg strikes, particularly her fast, forceful kicks, as well as her muscular physique.
According to Liang, she had approximately three months between being cast and the start of filming. During that time, she began training daily and intensified her leg-strengthening workouts. In an interview with Omelete, the actress explained that her preparation involved an intense routine of gym workouts and martial arts training.
Her training also included Taekwondo, Muay Thai, and Wushu. Liang told Empire Magazine that she practiced martial arts for about two hours a day to recreate the character’s movements. Beyond the physical preparation, she decided to study the original source material firsthand. The actress said she downloaded different versions of Street Fighter on PlayStation 5 and recorded Chun-Li’s movements during fights so she could analyze them in slow motion.
This approach allowed her to study the character’s posture, strikes, and movement in detail. The goal was to ensure that the movie’s version of Chun-Li retained recognizable elements for fans of the video game franchise.
Callina Liang’s Physical Transformation for Street Fighter
Callina Liang’s preparation for Street Fighter also involved a significant change in her diet. While building muscle, the actress revealed that she ate as many as 12 eggs a day and had meals every two hours.
According to Liang’s account in an interview with Omelete, maintaining the eating routine could be difficult, but it was part of the process of achieving the physique required to play Chun-Li. By the end of filming, Liang said each of her thighs had increased in circumference by approximately 2.6 inches (6.5 centimeters).
The transformation was not purely aesthetic. Since much of Chun-Li’s fighting style relies on fast leg movements, the training also helped Liang improve her physical conditioning for the action sequences.
Who Is Chun-Li in Street Fighter?
Chun-Li is one of the most important characters in the Street Fighter franchise. She made her debut in Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, which was originally released in arcades in 1991.
In the games’ storyline, Chun-Li is a martial artist and Interpol officer with a personal connection to the investigation into M. Bison and the criminal organization Shadaloo.
The character also became a landmark in fighting game history as one of the first female fighters to achieve widespread popularity. Her distinctive appearance, kick-based fighting style, and signature moves, including the Kikoken and Hyakuretsukyaku, helped establish her as one of the franchise’s defining icons.
Chun-Li’s Role in the New Street Fighter Movie
The new Street Fighter movie is set in 1993. In the story, Ryu and Ken are drawn back into the world of fighting when Chun-Li recruits them to compete in the World Warrior Tournament.
According to the official synopsis, the tournament conceals a conspiracy that puts the fighters on a collision course. Ryu and Ken must face not only their opponents but also unresolved issues from their own pasts.
The film is directed by Kitao Sakurai and stars Andrew Koji as Ryu, Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, and Callina Liang as Chun-Li. The supporting cast includes David Dastmalchian, Jason Momoa, Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns, 50 Cent, Orville Peck, Vidyut Jammwal, and Mel Jarnson, among others.
Street Fighter is scheduled to hit theaters on October 16, 2026, with distribution by Paramount Pictures. Legendary has confirmed the release date and identified Callina Liang as Chun-Li in the film’s official description.
