Wong shang chi actor12/28/2023 ![]() Wenwu is, in a sense, an amalgamation of these two comic-book characters cut from the same Yellow Peril cloth. ![]() The Mandarin shared many of the same racist features as his predecessor, along with a simplistic desire to destroy the Western world while on a path to global domination. The character, which author Sax Rohmer created largely as an extension of a centuries-old racist fear of East Asia, had appeared in movies, books, radio serials, and other properties for decades before Marvel began licensing him in its Master of Kung Fu series.įu Manchu helped inspire the Mandarin, an Iron Man villain who possessed 10 mystically powered rings. In the comics, Shang-Chi’s father was originally a deeply problematic pulp villain with a long history in Hollywood and pop culture: Fu Manchu. But even though Leung first signed an American agent back in 2005, it wasn’t until Marvel approached him for Shang-Chi that the superstar finally chose to make his Hollywood debut.Īlong with Leung’s swaggering performance, Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton and cowriter Dave Callaham’s efforts to reestablish a character with an unusual amount of baggage help make Wenwu one of the most compelling villains ever to appear in the MCU, which has sometimes struggled to craft compelling Big Bads. Leung is a legendary Hong Kong cinema actor who built a massive international following through his brilliant collaborations with director Wong Kar-wai (including Chungking Express and In the Mood for Love), as well as John Woo’s Hard Boiled. While Shang-Chi is loaded with strong performances, from Liu’s star-making turn to Awkwafina’s comedic-relief role as Katy, Tony Leung’s portrayal of the grief-stricken and power-hungry Wenwu is one of the film’s biggest highlights. Here are my biggest takeaways from the film, ranging from why it works so well to where it may fit within the greater scope of the MCU. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is the MCU’s first origin film since Captain Marvel introduced the space-traveling Carol Danvers in 2019, and while the lion’s share of its running time focuses on Shang-Chi’s backstory, it also hints at where Phase 4 may be heading. As the first non-prequel film of the MCU’s emergent Phase 4, it’s also a pivotal release for Marvel Studios, which is seeding its interconnected universe with new stories and characters following the conclusion of the decade-long Infinity Saga. The success of Shang-Chi, which became only the fourth Hollywood-produced film since 1993 to feature a predominantly Asian cast, is a monumental win for Asian representation in Hollywood. ![]() Liu first manifested and then owned a role he staked out more than seven years ago when he tweeted at Marvel, “great job with Cpt America and Thor. The film successfully blends thrilling action sequences with more gripping performances and nuanced characters than one would typically find in a standard martial arts film or MCU affair, including the breakout appearance of Simu Liu, the Chinese Canadian actor who portrays the titular Chinese American hero. Although Black Widow made slightly more in its first three days in theaters, Shang-Chi shattered the previous Labor Day record with an estimated $90 million in domestic earnings, adding $56.2 million overseas (excluding China, where it’s yet to be released) to exceed all projections with a worldwide total of $146.2 million.īeyond its early (and possibly precedent-setting) success at the box office, Shang-Chi has garnered widespread praise from critics and audiences alike. But buoyed in part, perhaps, by being the first Marvel movie since 2019 to debut exclusively in theaters, Shang-Chi ended all doubts with a historically hot start. Nearly four weeks after Disney CEO Bob Chapek referred to Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings as “ an interesting experiment” for the company’s nebulous release strategy, Marvel Studios’ first film to feature an Asian lead debuted with a dominant opening weekend.īox office expectations for Shang-Chi were muted by concerns about the spread of the delta variant, the poor performance of DC’s The Suicide Squad, and the steep falloff for Marvel’s Black Widow after its early-July day-and-date opening.
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