Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Simu Liu recently opened up about the physical pain he endured after appearing on the hit First We Feast series Hot Ones.
"...I would say the thing that surprised me the most is how much spicier Da’ Bomb is than anything else I've ever had in my entire life," Liu told Complex about trying the spiciest hot sauce offered by host Sean Evans. "Da' Bomb is Da' Worst. It's not even good. Like, it's not even tasty. It's just this chemical spice that's not pleasant. It's not rooted in anything; there's no pepper, there's no hint of anything organic in there. Somebody in a lab was just like, 'Let me just make the spiciest thing imaginable and not worry about flavor at all.'"
The Marvel Cinematic Universe actor added the only thing worse than consuming the sauce was dealing with the repercussions when he got home, noting, "...I'll say about the aftermath, I was in my bed curled up in a fetal position at 7 a.m. the next morning and I couldn't sleep because my stomach was just killing me." He continued, "And then I was on the toilet and, you know, everyone knows about the ring of fire, OK? That was one of the worst rings of fire I've ever experienced. Really, truly, truly awful."
Those unfamiliar with the "ring of fire" should know the condition involves painful bowel movements in the hours or days after enjoying an extra spicy meal. Despite the rough recovery, however, Liu remains proud of his performance on the show.
"And I don't want to toot my own horn too much, but I took chunky bites. I wasn't dainty about it," the actor continued. "I went in. I wasn't super familiar with Da' Bomb to begin with, and so I don't know if it worked out in my favor. I didn't have any expectations going in, so I took a massive bite and deeply, deeply regretted it later."
Liu also took a moment to praise Evans' interviewing skills, noting, "...Sean is incredibly well researched. He really digs deep and finds people that are close to you and interviews them, and gets the background that you need to make a really cool interview."
During his Hot Ones appearance, Liu ate chicken wings featuring 10 levels of spicy hot sauce while also answering questions and chugging Boba tea. In addition to being a wing master, the actor recently confirmed he will reprise his role as Shaun/Shang-Chi in the recently greenlit sequel.
"I guess I wasn't the most surprised given everything that had happened, but I'm so relieved to hear that [director Destin Daniel Cretton] was confirmed to come back," Liu said at the time. "Again, not a surprise, but it's just so good to feel the engine turning and to be like, great, great, we get to tell more story and delve deeper into the characters and hopefully provide more of those badass fight sequences."
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is streaming now on Disney+.