This September, Shang-Chi, Marvel's Master of Martial Arts, will finally join the MCU through his own origin film: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
The film stars Simu Liu as Shang-Chi who is forced to confront his family and their connections to the mystical Ten Rings organization; and, while the story is sure to be personal considering its focus on family, both trailers have shown that Marvel is diving deep into the world of martial arts.
In fact, Shang-Chi writer Dave Callaham, known for also penning Wonder Woman 1984 and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2, confirmed just as much while also expressing how "meaningful and important" Marvel's next film will be.
SHANG-CHI WRITER EXPLAINS THE FILM'S IMPACT
In an interview with CBR, Dave Callaham steered clear of any Shang-Chi spoilers but still built up hype for the film's unprecedented fight scenes saying, "the hand-to-hand fight sequences...are very much unlike anything that we've ever seen in the [Marvel Cinematic Universe] before:"
"Well, as you can imagine, I probably can't say too much about it! What I feel confident that I can say is, for Marvel fans and fans in general, I am very confident in saying that the action scenes and the fight sequences, the hand-to-hand fight sequences in that film, are very much unlike anything that we've ever seen in the [Marvel Cinematic Universe] before. Everybody involved, very proud of the work that was done there. They're very visceral and very practical, which is neat."
After 20+ superhero films, Marvel fans are more than familiar with action set pieces and stunning fight sequences. But, martial arts on this particular scale is new to the MCU. And, according to Callaham, is something new that Marvel is bringing to the table.
While Callaham is clearly excited about that prospect, he also stated that Shang-Chi is "an incredibly important movie" for reasons beyond fight choreography:
"On a larger scale, I think what I'd love to say is that it's an incredibly important movie. I myself am Chinese American, and so the opportunity to be a part of the first movie to put Asian American leads in front of a superhero movie of that scale, I think, is going to be really meaningful and important, not only for Asian fans, but for everybody, just for the sake of visibility and representation."
Ultimately, Callaham feels Shang-Chi can change "what can be on our screens in the future:"
"So I couldn't be happier that it's happening. I think it's a challenging time right now. So it's worked out in a way that I think will really, hopefully, change the way that people look at these types of movies and what can be on our screens in the future."
THE FUTURE IMPACT OF SHANG-CHI
One of the reasons why the MCU is still going strong after a decade of 20+ films is that its movies are never just about the action. From Callaham's comments, it sounds like that tradition will only continue with Shang-Chi.
Granted, from what fans have seen of the film's fight scenes in the trailers and from what Callaham has said about their "practical" and "visceral" elements, this is exciting and something new and fresh to look forward to.
However, what the film will mean for Asian fans and its impact on not just the MCU but the general audience is just as exciting, but even more so, powerful.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is set to release in theaters on September 3, 2021.
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