When the Birds of Prey joined the DC Extended Universe, in a form, in Harley Quinn: Birds Of Prey, fans were very curious about this live action version of Black Canary. The Arrowverse had multiple Canaries in its canon, and the character already appeared in liveaction in Smallville as well, so the audience was no stranger to the character getting a live action adaptation. That version of the character, however, is part of a larger ensemble, with much of her backstory put on the back burner for the larger narrative.
Jurnee Smollet gets a chance to play the character again. A Black Canary movie is officially in development for streaming service HBO Max. It’s not clear yet if it will be an origin story of sorts for the character, or whether it will be a standalone feature or set in the wider DCEU. Fans have been voicing their desire to see other comic book characters connected to Black Canary in her solo film, and one of those is Lady Shiva. The two don’t always see eye to eye in the comics, but they’ve shared a sensei and teamed up on occasion.
Kelly Hu
It’s not clear if Lady Shiva were to be a part of the Black Canary project whether she would be a contemporary of Black Canary’s, like Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s Huntress, or perhaps a slightly older fighter, like Rosie Perez’s Rene Montoya. If the character was aged up a little bit, Kelly Hu would be an excellent choice for the role of Lady Shiva.
For one thing, Hu is no stranger to comic book roles or fight scenes. She guest starred as China White in Arrow early in the show’s run, but she also made an impression on Marvel fans as Lady Deathstrike in X2: X-Men United. Hu is also familiar with the character of Lady Shiva. She’s voiced the character for multiple animated properties and video games.
Vanessa Kai
Vanessa Kai is probably better known for her theater work instead of her on-screen work. Most of her roles on screen have been in a guest-starring capacity in television shows. That is, until the premiere of the CW’s Kung-Fu remake.
In the series, Kai stars as Pei-Ling, the former sensei to main character Nicky. She is largely stoic, nearly always calm and collected, dispensing sage advice in flashbacks - or as a ghost in Nicky’s head. Many of Kai’s scenes are actually in a monastery during training or sparring sessions between the characters, demonstrating she’s got the skills to engage in complicated fight scenes opposite or alongside Jurnee Smollet. A role in Black Canary would be a huge step for someone who most often plays television characters like “Board Member” in Gotham.
Liu Yifei
Most of Liu Yifei’s roles have been in Chinese cinema since she moved to China from the United States in 2002 to pursue a career. Global audiences, however, got a chance to see what she could do when she was cast in Disney’s live-action remake of Mulan.
Mulan wasn’t exactly well-received by a lot of critics, but it does showcase a lot of the actress’ skills. With a background that includes a lot of action movies and television programs, she’s well versed in performing for fight scenes and with weapons. Her experience in that area would be an asset for Lady Shiva, a character who is more likely to use her blows than her words to get her point across with an enemy. She’s also the same age as Jurnee Smollet, which could allow for their origin stories to overlap as Black Canary and Lady Shiva do share a sensei in DC Comics. The disappearance of that shared sensei is what gets them to team up for the first time.
Ziyi Zhang
Ziyi Zhang will likely be forever known for her breakout role in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The movie is hailed as more than an action movie, but a piece of art. Since then, Zhang has been in a variety of Chinese and Hollywood films, creating a diverse portfolio for herself.
She’d still be a huge catch by Warner Bros. for a role like Lady Shiva though. Many of her more recent roles, like in Legendary's Monsterverse chapter Godzilla: King of the Monsters, have seen her as smaller pieces of a large ensemble cast. Playing Lady Shiva would show a whole new generation of movie fans just how capable she is of standing out on screen. With her martial arts and dramatic experience, she would be pretty perfect casting for the role.
Leah Lewis
If the team behind Black Canary wanted to change up their adaptation of the characters and make Lady Shiva younger or less experienced than the titular character, Leah Lewis would make for an interesting choice. Though she’s been acting and singing since she was a child, it’s her recent turn as George Fan in the CW’s Nancy Drew that’s her breakout role.
As far as fans are aware, Lewis doesn’t have experience in martial arts, but that’s not necessarily a problem since she does have experience in heavily choreographed storytelling. In addition to acting, Lewis studied dance and gymnastics growing up, including Russian ballet with Central Florida Ballet. She’s also an experienced fencer. That particular combination could make fight training come a little easier to her, and would certainly give her version of Lady Shiva a different physicality than a trained martial artist.
Of course, whether or not Lady Shiva will even be a part of Black Canary’s on-screen story is still up in the air as fans wait to see what her movie will be about.