Simu Liu Defends 'Dragon's Den' Entrepreneurs He Accused of Cultural Appropriation: 'It's Never Okay To Make Threats'

The actor made it clear although he doesn't agree with the entrepreneurs' business practices, he believes they were acting in good faith.

October 13, 2024

Simu Liu has addressed the commotion over him calling out an aspiring bubble tea company for cultural appropriation.

On Saturday, Liu shared a TikTok where he reflected on the viral moment of him criticizing a pair of entrepreneurs looking to fund a bottled bubble tea business called "Bobba" on the Canadian TV show Dragon's Den.
The business partners were looking for a $1 million investment in the company in exchange for an 18 percent share.

Liu appreciated the pitch but made it clear that the entrepreneurs didn't include any Asian representation or get consultation on how to market their product properly. Because of that, Liu accused them of cultural appropriation, a sentiment shared by many people online who supported him.

In his TikTok post, Liu claimed people have taken things out of hand by resorting to bullying and harassing the entrepreneurs online and sending them death threats. According to Liu, he doesn't want his message to get lost with bullying and hopes that people can spread awareness the right way.

"It's never okay to make threats," said Liu. "It's never okay to bully and harass online, and what I mean by that I don't mean the business owners don't deserve valid criticism, and I don't believe that you should not be vocal about your disagreement, but you know I think we can all agree common sense there's a line there's a line that you don't and shouldn't cross."

He continued, "There's a line that you wouldn't cross in person, and I just don't want the legacy of this segment to be pitchforks, and you know, people fearing for their safety. I think we're starting to lose the plot of I think what ultimately the positive energy of this is, which is let's educate people, let's make the world a better place, let's make people aware that you know certain things aren't okay from a cultural perspective when people's personal safety are being questioned that's when I think I have to take issue."

The rest of the video showed Liu offering his viewers several ways to express themselves. He reiterated that the entrepreneurs were trying to create their business in good faith but should've done their due diligence in researching a product that comes from Asian culture.