The Marvel Cinematic Universe has had a long and illustrious legacy since its inception in 2008. Now it is a multi-billion dollar franchise, with the movies breaking all kinds of records. They have Avengers: Endgame which became the second highest-grossing film of all time (the highest for a while) and then Black Panther, the history-making, unprecedented, was the first superhero film to be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. .
These are just two of the amazing adventures Marvel Studios has done through the MCU. While it sounds thrilling as a fan to look back on MCU history, we also have to admit that the franchise catered to their white and male audiences. It was in 2017 when Black Panther was released, featuring a black lead and cast. In 2019, Brie Larson became the first woman to lead a film in the franchise alongside Captain Marvel.
Similarly, we are getting our first Asian lead in 2021, 13 years after the launch of the MCU. Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings starring Simu Liu and a pan-Asian cast including Awkwafina, Michelle Yeoh and Tony Leung, is all set to make history when it releases on September 3.
While it’s great that we’re finally getting this movie, it could have come to us earlier, especially because the Ten Rings have been mentioned since Iron Man (2008). In Iron Man 3, we saw Ben Kingsley playing Trevor Slattery, an actor who turned out to be the Mandarin, snatched away the opportunity to feature Iron Man’s legendary nemesis in the comics (and an Asian as the villain). to cast the character).
The twist was reversed in Iron Man 3, and the studios had to rectify it by releasing the Kingsley-starring short film All Hell the King (2014), which featured a real Mandarin who is unhappy with Trevor Slattery’s caricature. Years later, we learn that Mandarin Shang-Chi’s father is Wenwu.
Now that we’ve established that a Shang-Chi movie may be coming soon, let’s give the studios credit where it’s due. For starters, Shang-Chi is directed by Destin Daniel Creighton and written by Creighton and David Callaham. As mentioned earlier, the film features a pan-Asian cast. While that should be the norm for a film like this, it doesn’t often happen in Hollywood. This is due, in part, to the impact Black Panther has had on the franchise as well as the culture.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is also the first MCU film to feature martial arts as a fighting technique. Previously, Marvel Studios was criticized for its cultural appropriation in Iron Fist, a comic character who is an expert in all martial arts. Shang-chi also has the ability to, in a way, correct the mistakes of the past.
Similarly, Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings are also responsible for revising the racial stereotypes that Marvel Comics perpetuated with their opening story. In the comics, Mandarins were depicted with exaggerated features and stereotypical catchphrases. On the other hand, the observer was Fu Manchu, (Shang-Chi’s father and later arch-nemesis), who was also portrayed with racial stereotypes. In the upcoming movie, these two characters are merged into one, and hopefully it will be a better written villain than in the comics.
In the trailers and videos released by Marvel to promote the film, we can see that the film incorporates many elements of Chinese legend and mythology. On the other hand, it aims to paint an authentic picture of life in San Francisco’s Chinatown as well as the lives of first-generation Asian Americans.
Marvel is slowly and steadily learning the importance of telling these stories and doing it the right way. Shang-Chi’s story will help many people feel watched, and it is extremely important to tell it without perpetuating stereotypes. Hence, the expectations from the cast and crew are high.
From the film’s videos and early reviews, Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings is considered one of the best and most influential superhero movies of 2021. It has the potential to be the next cultural phenomenon.
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