Marvel’s Shang-Chi Trailer Promises Breathtaking Martial Arts Action

Image: Marvel Studios

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has debuted its first trailer which promises to deliver spectacular martial arts action. The movie will introduce us to a new hero: Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) who will be part of the interconnected films and tv shows of the Marvel Cinematic Universe

The film will find the superpowered martial artist Shang-Chi facing off against the mysterious Ten Rings organization and its leader, the Mandarin. The Ten Rings organization was first teased in Iron Man (2008) but was not followed up by a proper storyline. 

The trailer also hint’s at a Mortal Kombat-Esque tournament that features different fighters including Shang-Chi and the Death Dealer. Simu Liu also has a background in martial arts such as Taekwondo and Wing-Chun, which makes him a suitable choice for the action-oriented martial arts movie. Check out the trailer below!

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is slated to be released on September 3, 2021. It will be one of the four Marvel titles that we can catch in theatres this year. The rest of the titles include Black Widow (July 9), Eternals (November 5) and Spider-Man: No Way Home (December 17).

Phase 4 of the MCU will feature some unique superheroes and teams that might not be regular big names that we have heard, namely the Eternals and Shang-Chi. This is a good approach, as it widens the scope of heroes in Marvel’s already huge roster. 

Shang-Chi will be the first Asian protagonist in the MCU and will embody Asian and Asian American themes. Following the commercial and critical success of Black Panther (2018), which became a cultural phenomenon, Marvel’s move to include more diverse ethnicities seems safe play. We also got the first look of Shang-Chi in his costume!

While Black Widow will be available in theatres and on Disney Plus premiere access, Shang-Chi is currently only stated for a theatrical debut. Though that may change depending on the way the pandemic progresses near the release date. 

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will star Simu Liu (Shang-Chi), Awkwafina (Katy, Shang-Chi’s friend), Michelle Yeoh (Jiang Nan) and Fala Chen (Jiang Li). The antagonist of the film will be played by Tony Leung as The Mandarin. The character of ‘fake’ Mandarin was previously played by Ben Kingsley in Iron Man 3 (2013).  
The film is directed by Asian-American filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton (Just Mercy) and written by Chinese-American screenwriter Dave Callaham (Wonder Woman 1984).