‘Street Fighter’ Star Callina Liang Steals the Spotlight at Complexcon as Chun-Li Hype Hits Its Peak

ComplexCon celebrated its 10th anniversary this year by making its Los Angeles debut, and few attractions drew as much buzz as the ‘Street Fighter’ movie booth. With the film’s release less than 2 weeks away, Callina Liang stopped by to give fans a taste of what Paramount and Legendary’s long-awaited adaptation has to offer.

The booth leaned heavily into the franchise’s arcade roots. Visitors could play ‘Street Fighter II’ on retro cabinets, pose with a life-sized recreation of the game’s Bonus Stage car and shop an exclusive collection of hoodies, tees and totes from Fujiwara’s Fragment Design label.

That’s where Liang made her latest splash. Photos shared on October 4 show the actress, who plays Chun-Li in the film, posing at the ‘Street Fighter’ booth in a white cropped tee and black pants, flashing a playful smile in a blue-and-white cap beside one of the retro arcade cabinets.

Liang’s appearance made perfect sense given the setting. As the film’s Chun-Li, she has become one of the faces of the campaign, and her presence was a natural draw for a crowd full of longtime fans.

The backdrop added to the excitement. In one shot, a Fortnite and ‘Street Fighter’ banner promoting an October 10 arrival can be seen behind her, alongside fans dressed in Chun-Li-inspired cosplay.

Callina Liang photographed at the "Street Fighter" ComplexCon 2026. 📷 https://t.co/6LBLPlgu9R
— Cinethology (@thecinethology) October 4, 2026

Liang put serious work into the role. She reportedly trained about 2 hours a day in Taekwondo, Muay Thai and Wushu, worked on her leg strength and studied every version of ‘Street Fighter’ on PlayStation 5 to learn the character’s moves.

Her focus was on capturing Chun-Li’s kick-heavy fighting style from the games, even studying the moves in slow motion so she could recreate them. Fans have noticed the effort, with many praising her look as the iconic fighter. Chun-Li has a long history on screen. Ming-Na Wen played her in the original ‘Street Fighter’ film, and Kristin Kreuk took on the role in ‘Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li’.

The Canadian actress, born on May 14, 2000, first drew attention in Steven Soderbergh’s ‘Presence’ and also starred in ‘Bad Genius’. She joined Legendary’s ‘Street Fighter’ as Chun-Li in June 2025, and she speaks both English and Mandarin fluently.

The new film is set in 1993, the year ‘Street Fighter II’ hit arcades. According to the official logline, estranged fighters Ryu and Ken Masters are pulled back into combat when the mysterious Chun-Li recruits them for the next World Warrior Tournament, only for a deadly conspiracy to force them to face each other.

Callina Liang attends “Street Fighter” at ComplexCon 2026. 📸 (Jesse Grant/Getty) https://t.co/8K53ySufKD
— JumpTrailers (@JumpTrailers) October 4, 2026

Andrew Koji plays Ryu, and Noah Centineo plays Ken, while the stacked cast includes Jason Momoa as Blanka, David Dastmalchian as M. Bison, and Roman Reigns as Akuma. Cody Rhodes, Eric André, Andrew Schulz, Vidyut Jammwal and Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson also appear.

The film is directed by Kitao Sakurai, best known for ‘The Eric André Show’, and runs 119 minutes as an action comedy. It was originally scheduled for March 20, 2026, but moved after Legendary’s distribution deal with Sony ended, with Paramount taking over through a new 3-year partnership.

PERFECT! Watch the New Trailer for Street Fighter, hitting theaters everywhere October 16. https://t.co/jAAPf1k9jf
— Street Fighter Movie (@Street_Fighter) September 1, 2026

‘Street Fighter’ now opens in US theaters on October 16, including IMAX screens. If the ComplexCon crowd is any indication, Liang’s Chun-Li could be one of the movie’s biggest selling points.