Photo: Courtesy Warner Bros. PicturesLewis Tan is starring in the role of a lifetime inMortal Kombat, but he almost landed another huge role.In a recent interview, the 34-year-old actor revealed he’d lost out on the lead role in Marvel’sShang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.Recalling how he landed the role in theMortal Kombatmovie adaptation, Tan toldEntertainment Tonighthe had “just lost a crazy job—a really, really high-caliber level job—and I heard that news on a plane to Japan and I was, like, devastated.“That job, Tan said, “was for the role of Shang-Chi in the Marvel film,” which went to his “friend"Simu Liu.“I think he’s going to do a fantastic job with the material,” he added.Simu Liu, a friend of Lewis Tan, ultimately won the role in Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings.Albert L. Ortega/GettyTan said he “did this mediation course, and I came back and then I was on my way to Nashville, Tennessee, to race cars at NASCAR—I was like, ‘Maybe I’m the first Asian person to ever be in this place before!'— and all of a sudden I get a phone call saying I got the role in [Mortal Kombat].““I was supposed to drive a car that day and I ended up not doing it because I was like, ‘Uh oh! I need to be safe now because I’ve got an opportunity here,” he recalled.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.Tan, who has starred inIron Fist, Into the Badlands, Wu AssassinsandDeadpool 2, said, “Everything happens at the right time [for] the right reason and looking back on everything that played out, I wouldn’t change it for an instant.““I’m very grateful for the opportunity, and I’m very grateful that just diverse people are leading these amazing films,” he continued. “To see our faces that are usually looked over and looked past and to have that opportunity to be part of that change that I didn’t get to see when I was growing up, I’m honored to do that and I’m happy for everybody else.“Mortal Kombatopens in theaters on April 23. It also hits HBO Max on April 23, where it be available for 31 days.
Photo: Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures
Lewis Tan is starring in the role of a lifetime inMortal Kombat, but he almost landed another huge role.In a recent interview, the 34-year-old actor revealed he’d lost out on the lead role in Marvel’sShang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.Recalling how he landed the role in theMortal Kombatmovie adaptation, Tan toldEntertainment Tonighthe had “just lost a crazy job—a really, really high-caliber level job—and I heard that news on a plane to Japan and I was, like, devastated.“That job, Tan said, “was for the role of Shang-Chi in the Marvel film,” which went to his “friend"Simu Liu.“I think he’s going to do a fantastic job with the material,” he added.Simu Liu, a friend of Lewis Tan, ultimately won the role in Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings.Albert L. Ortega/GettyTan said he “did this mediation course, and I came back and then I was on my way to Nashville, Tennessee, to race cars at NASCAR—I was like, ‘Maybe I’m the first Asian person to ever be in this place before!'— and all of a sudden I get a phone call saying I got the role in [Mortal Kombat].““I was supposed to drive a car that day and I ended up not doing it because I was like, ‘Uh oh! I need to be safe now because I’ve got an opportunity here,” he recalled.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.Tan, who has starred inIron Fist, Into the Badlands, Wu AssassinsandDeadpool 2, said, “Everything happens at the right time [for] the right reason and looking back on everything that played out, I wouldn’t change it for an instant.““I’m very grateful for the opportunity, and I’m very grateful that just diverse people are leading these amazing films,” he continued. “To see our faces that are usually looked over and looked past and to have that opportunity to be part of that change that I didn’t get to see when I was growing up, I’m honored to do that and I’m happy for everybody else.“Mortal Kombatopens in theaters on April 23. It also hits HBO Max on April 23, where it be available for 31 days.
Lewis Tan is starring in the role of a lifetime inMortal Kombat, but he almost landed another huge role.
In a recent interview, the 34-year-old actor revealed he’d lost out on the lead role in Marvel’sShang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Recalling how he landed the role in theMortal Kombatmovie adaptation, Tan toldEntertainment Tonighthe had “just lost a crazy job—a really, really high-caliber level job—and I heard that news on a plane to Japan and I was, like, devastated.”
That job, Tan said, “was for the role of Shang-Chi in the Marvel film,” which went to his “friend"Simu Liu.
“I think he’s going to do a fantastic job with the material,” he added.
Simu Liu, a friend of Lewis Tan, ultimately won the role in Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings.Albert L. Ortega/Getty
Tan said he “did this mediation course, and I came back and then I was on my way to Nashville, Tennessee, to race cars at NASCAR—I was like, ‘Maybe I’m the first Asian person to ever be in this place before!'— and all of a sudden I get a phone call saying I got the role in [Mortal Kombat].”
“I was supposed to drive a car that day and I ended up not doing it because I was like, ‘Uh oh! I need to be safe now because I’ve got an opportunity here,” he recalled.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.
Tan, who has starred inIron Fist, Into the Badlands, Wu AssassinsandDeadpool 2, said, “Everything happens at the right time [for] the right reason and looking back on everything that played out, I wouldn’t change it for an instant.”
“I’m very grateful for the opportunity, and I’m very grateful that just diverse people are leading these amazing films,” he continued. “To see our faces that are usually looked over and looked past and to have that opportunity to be part of that change that I didn’t get to see when I was growing up, I’m honored to do that and I’m happy for everybody else.”
Mortal Kombatopens in theaters on April 23. It also hits HBO Max on April 23, where it be available for 31 days.
source: people.com
