How do you build a pair of thighs worthy of one of the most iconic fighters in video game history?
For Callina Liang, who plays Chun-Li in the upcoming Street Fighter movie, the answer involved taking her training—and her diet—seriously.
“I strengthened my legs a lot and changed my diet drastically,” the Canadian actress told Empire in August. “But it worked. By the end of the shoot, my thighs had grown six-and-a-half centimeters each.”
That works out to more than 2.5 inches per thigh.
Liang had big shoes—or perhaps boots—to fill. Since making her debut in Street Fighter II in 1991, Chun-Li has become one of gaming’s most recognizable characters and is widely regarded as the “first lady of fighting games.”
Her influence has extended well beyond the arcade. Chun-Li has remained a fixture of pop culture for decades, even inspiring the title of Nicki Minaj’s platinum-certified 2018 single, “Chun-Li.”
Callina Liang takes on the role of Chun-Li in the new Street Fighter movie — and stepping into the shoes of one of gaming’s most recognizable fighters meant looking and moving the part.
In the games, Chun-Li famously wears a modified qipao, a traditional Chinese dress with a high collar and capped sleeves. Her version, however, features two dramatic slits extending above the hips, putting her muscular thighs on full display.
It’s an iconic look, but it also highlights the source of Chun-Li’s greatest strength: her legs.
“Chun-Li is all kicks,” Liang, 26, explained.
To prepare for the role, the actress trained for two hours a day across three martial arts disciplines. She practiced taekwondo, the Korean martial art known for its emphasis on dynamic kicks; Muay Thai, which incorporates punches, elbows, knees and shin strikes; and wushu, a modern Chinese martial arts discipline closely associated with traditional kung fu.
And Liang wasn’t training alone. Noah Centineo, who plays Ken Masters, said he, Liang and Andrew Koji — who stars as franchise protagonist Ryu — trained together six days a week for six weeks.
It’s a grueling regimen befitting one of martial arts gaming’s biggest icons — a character who has even been embraced by real-life action legends. Jackie Chan famously dressed as Chun-Li for a fight sequence in the 1993 movie City Hunter.
