Editor's note: This interview was conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike began.
On July 12, Simu Liu helped turned London pink. And by July 21, the rest of world will also be under the plastic, fantastic spell of "Barbie."
Liu recalls how he, along with several of his "Barbie" co-stars, pressed a button on at the U.K. premiere that lit up some of London's most iconic landmarks in neon pink lights — a perfect example of how the "Barbie" marketing both mirrors and feeds into the massive global hype surrounding one of the summer's most anticipated movies.
"I think a lot of people are really excited for this movie," Liu tells TODAY.com the day after the premiere in London. "And it's really fun when the entire promotion is around an entire color."
Pink, Liu adds, is one very important aspect of "Kenergy." And Liu, who plays one of many Ken dolls in the anticipated movie, would know.
How Liu found his 'Kenergy'
For the uninitiated, “Kenergy” is the indescribable vibe of all the movie's Kens.
Nearly all of the men cast in “Barbie” play Ken dolls — except for Allan, played by Michael Cera, Will Ferrell, who portrays the CEO of Mattel, and Ferrell's fellow corporate executives.
Ryan Gosling, who plays the movie's main Ken and counterpart to Margot Robbie's Barbie, has been an outspoken advocate for Kenergy (and awakening your own), but has admitted the idea can be hard to put into words.
We'll put it like this: Kenergy is about being a gentleman and obsessed with Barbie, all while looking your best and feeling confident.
Liu agrees.
"I love the concept of Kenergy," Liu says. "It's this male energy, but it's very non-toxic — Kenergy doesn't come at anyone else's expense. Kenergy is one's own individual peak, in terms of their own self-expression and their confidence."
Kenergy is one’s own individual peak, in terms of their own self-expression and their confidence.
Simu Liu
Liu explains how it feels to have Kenergy coursing through you.
"We've all had those days where everything is working for us. Our hair is just right. The brows are working, the outfit's perfect. We feel like we just can't take a bad picture. We feel like everyone's laughing at our jokes. That's definitely Kenergy," he explains.
"But it doesn't mean that we disrespect other people, doesn't mean that we put other people down," he adds. "We're standing in our own light and we're celebrating other people standing in theirs."
The actor says the dance scenes in "Barbie" coaxed out his Kenergy.
"What really got me into it (was) getting into the dance moves. I have a bit of a background in dance, and as soon as I clicked into that part of me, all of a sudden I felt the Kenergy rising up within me," Liu says. "I think once you put on that gold-and-white onesie, your hair is coiffed exactly the way you like it, and then the music starts playing and you're in a choreographed dance sequence, you start to feel pretty good about yourself."
From battle scenes in 'Shang-Chi' to 'Barbie'
Liu, 34, was introduced to most moviegoers through his starring role in "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings," the 2021 Marvel movie.
For Liu, the jump from superhero to super-Ken has been a "really cool transition."
"Shaun (from 'Shang-Chi') is your everyman, he's very much trying to figure things out in life. He's not the most extroverted person. He doesn't express himself in the way that he dresses — it's all very kind of utilitarian and everything that 'Barbie' is not.
"For this next character to be in a world where everyone is always constantly dressed immaculately and always living as the best version of themselves ... it's a really cool evolution."
Liu calls getting to play both roles and work with "Barbie" director Greta Gerwig and "Shang-Chi" director Destin Daniel Cretton "an embarrassment of riches."
Ahead of the premiere, he's eager for people to finally have the mysteries of "Barbie" — whose plot wasn't known until the first trailer — revealed in full.
"You cannot even describe what this movie is. The trailers and sound bites allude to how much fun this movie is and how spectacular it is. But they don't scratch the surface of how deep this movie goes, or all of the thematic elements of the film," he says.
“Our job is to get people in the into the movie theater so that they can experience it for themselves. Because once they do, then they’ll understand, but before that, it’s almost impossible to fully explain it.”
Gosling's 'I'm Just Ken' showstopper
Still, Warner Bros. has been unveiling some of the movie's mysteries ahead of the its premiere date. On July 10, Warner Bros. released a teaser for the scene Liu is most excited for people to see: Gosling's ballad, "I'm Just Ken."
“It’s so fun and camp, but it’s also so complex,” he says of the song, written by Mark Ronson and sung by Gosling.
“We really listen to the words that (Gosling) is singing and it alludes to a very real existential crisis that all of Kens face, which is like, ‘Do we have agency? Do we exist outside the gaze of the Barbies? Are we capable of defining ourselves outside just what the Barbies think about us?’”
When asked about the scene, Liu says he can't say too much without spoiling the significance of what's actually happening.
"The most wink-wink, nudge-nudge way that I can do it is to say that my character actually has a very prominent role in in that sequence," he says.
Liu references the "Beach Off" scene that has a brief appearance in one of the movie's teaser trailers, which hints at a rivalry between Liu's Ken and Gosling's Ken.
"I would say everything comes to a head and it's going to go down as one of the most memorable scenes in the movie," he says.
In the teaser, Liu’s Ken joins hands with Gosling’s Ken at the top of a Ken triangle formation. Gosling’s Ken appears to shrug off his hand at first, then gives in, perhaps a nod to their tense, but solid relationship.
Liu's take on 'Barbenheimer'
"Barbie" is just one half of the summer's most hyped cinematic event. The movie shares a release date with "Oppenheimer," Christopher Nolan's movie about J. Robert Oppenheimer, the scientist known for creating the atomic bomb.
The dichotomy between the bright pink of "Barbie" and dark tones of "Oppenheimer" has led to an internet-driven, fan-created pandemonium over the two films, known as "Barbenheimer." According to Variety, over 20,000 people have bought tickets to see the movies back-to-back.
Liu laughs, as he says he's well aware of the cultural moment.
"I will absolutely be seeing it," he says of "Oppenheimer."
"I love the friendly rivalry, I’m all for it. Right now we have two movies coming out on the same day — two films, two incredible storytellers. It's a win for cinema and it’s a win for movie theaters because you’re gonna want to watch both of these movies in the theater — a big screen with a big crowd of people. You’re gonna want to be a part of the energy."
As for the gendered "Barbie girlfriend" and "Oppenheimer" boyfriend" meme? Liu doesn't mince words for men who think they don't want to see "Barbie."
"Let's just say this: at least half of people in your life will watch 'Barbie' and will be so involved in the conversation surrounding 'Barbie.' You might as well watch it and become a part of it because it's truly gonna be something really, really special. It exists in so many different levels — it's fun, entertaining and thought provoking. I think men need to watch it as much as women do. It's a very important movie."
