He’s embellishing his story a little a bit, but I think his overall point rings true, and was made to convey that Asians growing up had no superheroes that looked like them that they could look up to, and see themselves in. All the popular superhero characters that were available were white. So in essence Simu was dressing up to play white characters and pretending to be them.
There was no Asian superhero that he could play. Which is why a movie like this is rather important in establishing an Asian superhero that will hopefully catch on as much as the white ones, or at least give characters that the demographic can connect to. Giving Asians in the West a superhero to look up to that looks like them is vitally important and a major reason this movie is even being made. Superheroes, even if they aren’t real, can be an empowering and inspirational in real life. Now an Asian guy who used to dress as non-Asian characters gets to dress up as a Asian superhero for the very first time in his life time - this time to serve as representation that will hopefully inspire many Asian children. Something that Simu and many other Asian Americans or Canadians didn’t have growing up.
