Bringing Chun-Li to the big screen has apparently demanded far more than learning a few signature kicks. Callina Liang, who plays the legendary Street Fighter combatant in Legendary's upcoming film, underwent an extensive physical transformation for the part--one that became so noticeable on camera that her stunt double reportedly needed padded costume pieces to better match Liang's lower-body build.
Director Kitao Sakurai shared the story during a Q&A at a media event held before the film's release. The discussion turned to the intense preparation Liang completed to portray Chun-Li, a character whose powerful legs and explosive kicking techniques have been central to her visual identity since her fighting-game debut.
Liang's training is said to have increased the circumference of each of her thighs by 6.5 centimeters over the course of production. That change created a practical issue when a double needed to take over for certain action material. Sakurai recalled seeing the stunt performer in what appeared to be unusual costume equipment, only to learn that padding had been added so the double's glutes would more closely match Liang's physique.
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"I knew it was serious when we were filming a scene kind of later in the movie, and I saw Callina's stunt double, and I was like, 'What are you wearing?'" Sakurai said. "And there were like these butt pads that she had to wear just to match Callina's physique."
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Noah Centineo, who plays Ken Masters, added some levity to the moment by joking that the rest of the cast had to wear the same kind of padding "out of solidarity." Liang laughed and summed up the production's fitness atmosphere simply: "We all had huge legs."
A Physique Built for Chun-Li's Fighting Style
The anecdote is funny, but it also underlines the seriousness with which Liang approached one of gaming's most recognizable characters. Chun-Li is commonly associated with rapid kicks, acrobatic movement, and exceptional lower-body strength. Her famous spinning attacks and highly mobile combat stance mean that a screen adaptation has to sell not just the costume and pose, but the physical force behind them.
Liang previously described a routine built around several martial arts disciplines. Her preparation included Taekwondo, Muay Thai, and Wushu, with roughly two hours of practice per day devoted to those forms. Each discipline brings a different dimension relevant to Chun-Li. Taekwondo emphasizes dynamic kicking, Muay Thai is built around powerful striking mechanics, and Wushu can help inform the controlled, stylized movement often associated with martial arts cinema.
She also paired that work with a major dietary adjustment intended to support muscle gain. During her bulking period, Liang said she ate 12 eggs a day and had to eat a meal every two hours. She described the regimen as difficult enough to leave her close to feeling sick, but said the effort paid off by the end of filming, when each thigh had grown by 6.5 centimeters.
"Chun-Li is all kicks," Liang said in an August interview. "So we did a bunch of Taekwondo training, Muay Thai, and Wushu (Kung Fu). I did two hours of that a day and strengthened my legs a lot and changed my diet drastically."
For an action production, that kind of transformation has consequences beyond appearance. A lead performer who has trained deeply can potentially bring more conviction to the timing, posture, transitions, and impact of choreography. It does not eliminate the need for stunt professionals, especially on sequences involving elevated risk, but it can make the handoff between actor and double more seamless--provided both performers look consistent in the frame. In Liang's case, that consistency required an unexpected solution.
Studying Chun-Li Beyond the Gym
Liang's preparation reportedly extended beyond conditioning and martial arts drills. To understand Chun-Li's game-specific movement, she downloaded every version of Street Fighter available on her PlayStation 5. She then recorded Chun-Li's moves on her phone, using that footage to study the character's battle behavior more closely.
That is a particularly direct way to approach a role rooted in interactive media. Street Fighter characters communicate much of their personality through animations: how they stand between rounds, how they shift their weight, how they launch an attack, and how they recover afterward. Chun-Li's poise and athleticism are expressed through those details as much as through dialogue or plot. Recording and revisiting the moves would give Liang a library of reference points that could be incorporated into rehearsals and performance choices.
It also reflects a challenge that comes with adapting a fighting game. Players may know these characters through decades of repeat animations, victory poses, special moves, and match intros. The movie does not need to imitate every frame of those games literally, but audiences will likely look for the recognizable qualities that make Chun-Li feel like Chun-Li: speed, precision, composure, and unmistakable leg-driven power.
Chun-Li has long been one of the defining figures in the Street Fighter roster. Often called the First Lady of Fighting Games, she has remained a major presence through the series' many eras. That history puts added attention on a live-action interpretation, especially one attempting to translate her extraordinary game physique into a more grounded film setting without losing the character's larger-than-life identity.
A Cast Taking Its Characters Seriously
The physical preparation described around Chun-Li fits a broader impression of a cast engaging closely with the material. Centineo's Ken Masters is another character whose game presence is tied to martial arts ability and a distinct silhouette. Meanwhile, David Dastmalchian, who plays M. Bison, has discussed taking a historical research-heavy approach to the villain, including studying cult leaders to shape his version of the psycho-powered dictator.
Those approaches are not identical, but they point to different ways a game adaptation can treat its source material. Liang focused on combat movement and body transformation. Dastmalchian looked to real-world figures when examining the psychology and authority of M. Bison. Centineo's joke about the padding may have been lighthearted, yet the context suggests a production where physical character work has been a notable part of the process.
Action movies frequently rely on illusion: camera angles, editing, choreography, costume design, doubles, and visual effects all contribute to the final result. The stunt-double padding story is a reminder that even small visual differences can matter when filmmakers are trying to sustain that illusion. If a performer's training changes their silhouette significantly during a shoot, costume and stunt departments have to account for it. In this instance, Liang's dedication seemingly made Chun-Li's famous lower-body strength visible enough that the production had to match it.
Street Fighter's Road Back to Theaters
Legendary's Street Fighter is scheduled to arrive in theaters on October 16, 2026. The film will bring the franchise's central fighters back to live action, with Liang as Chun-Li, Centineo as Ken Masters, and Dastmalchian as M. Bison.
There is still much audiences have yet to see about how the film will stage its fights, interpret the world of Street Fighter, and balance the series' heightened techniques with a cinematic story. However, the details from Liang's preparation offer a clear indication of the effort being invested in Chun-Li's physical presentation. Her training was not merely about approximating an athletic look; it involved sustained martial arts practice, a demanding bulking plan, close study of the games, and measurable body changes.
For fans, the most memorable part may still be Sakurai's account of the stunt double's padded costume. It is an unusually candid production detail, and one that neatly captures the scale of Liang's commitment. Chun-Li's iconic thighs have always been part of the character's design. In this case, honoring that trait apparently became serious enough that even the double had to be rebuilt for the role.
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