A new movie called The Legend of Baron To’a, starring Australian-Tongan actor Talia’uli (Uli) Latukefu, and New Zealand-Tongan actor John Tui opens today, in New Zealand cinemas.

A Pacific action comedy feature film directed by Kiel McNaughton, has Latukefu playing Fritz and Tui as Baron To’a.

The movie, tells the story of Fritz, played by Latukefu, a Tongan entrepreneur who returns to his old neighbourhood and inadvertently causes the theft of his late father's (Baron To’a) valued pro-wrestling title belt by some gangsters.

To'a is played by Tui in flashback sequences, and the film focuses on Fritz's attempts to reclaim the belt.

Tui told the New Zealand Herald, that being from the South Pacific, being Tongan, “these are the types of movies that are important for us, it speaks volumes for legacies.”

"We're children of immigrants who came here. I represent that and I hope to represent it well. We're the first wave of having to adapt to two cultures, living in westernised culture and holding our heritage at home, which is close to a lot of us."

“This movie, I tried to give integrity to my parents who came over here from Tonga to get a better life. This movie is close to my heart. I love it,” he said.

Latukefu said, this movie is about the struggle to manage your cultural heritage and identity and the expectations of what that brings; innately through parents or expectations you put on yourself.

Best known for his role as Byamba in the American Netflix series Marco Polo, Latukefu also played Cole in the short film Alien: Covenant - Prologue: Last Supper, and the feature film Alien: Covenant.

Tui is known for Battleship (2012), The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014) and Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018), and was also in Hollywood's Hobbs & Shaw (2019).