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Tony Leung's Hollywood appearance has floored quite a few — not just fans, but also those who have worked with him or encountered him on set.

"Otherworldly star", "master class in acting"

Kevin Feige, the president of Marvel Studios, recalled how he was left "nearly speechless" when he met Leung on the set of "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings".

According to Screen Rant, Feige called Leung an "otherworldly star", saying that he is a "very, very talented man".

Feige further said that they were "lucky" that Leung had chosen them to make his first Hollywood film appearance.

"I've been around a lot of movie stars and a lot of living legends, but I was nearly speechless when I met him briefly on the set," Feige said.

But Feige wasn't the only one.

In a post on Facebook group Subtle Asian Traits, co-star Simu Liu reflected on his experience being part of "Shang-Chi", ending his post with: "Tony Leung is magical. Seriously. MAGICAL."

He also shared more about what it was like to work with Leung, and what he has learnt from him in an Ask Me Anything Reddit thread.

This is what he said:

Yes, Liu really did say: "Also, I just love that my job was to literally stare into Tony's eyes for hours at a time."

Leung's role in the film

In the film, Leung plays the villain Wenwu, who is also Shang-Chi's father.

In a GQ interview, it was reported that Leung had always dreamed of making a Hollywood movie — he just never had the right opportunity as big-budget American films typically didn't involve Asian leads, let alone a Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong actor.

Leung also revisited some of his most iconic characters (many of which involve his role in Wong Kar-wai movies) in a GQ YouTube video. This is what Leung had to say about how he interpreted Wenwu in "Shang-Chi":

"Wenwu was written as a supervillain, but this time, I tried to invent this character from a human perspective because I didn't want to focus on being a villain... So I attempted to explore his heart. Why did he become someone like this?

[...] But I think he's more of a failed father, which means that he wanted to love his children but he didn't know how to love. He didn't even know how to love himself. That was the angle I used to reflect on this character."

More Shang Chi-related content:

Top photo via Tony Leung's Instagram.