Simu Liu previews his martial arts capabilities as Marvel's first Asian superhero in Destin Cretton's Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Simu Liu teases his martial arts skills in a new video. The upcoming Marvel Studios movie is set to introduce the franchise's first Asian headlining hero with Destin Cretton helming the project. Announced during last year's San Diego Comic-Con, the blockbuster will also see the debut of the real Mandarin played by the legendary actor Tony Leung.
Principal photography for the film was supposed to begin earlier this year in Australia, but the coronavirus pandemic forced it, as well as, every single production all over the world, to shut production. Since then, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has been delayed to a May 2021 release from an initial February 2021 roll out as the MCU's whole Phase 4 slate was shifted due to the ongoing global crisis. Now, however, filming has resumed and from the looks of it, Liu is more than ready to bring his upcoming Marvel hero to life.
Taking it to his official Instagram account, Liu shared a video of him doing an impressive somersault, effectively teasing fans what they can expect from Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings. While the background doesn't give any indication where he is, co-star Ronnie Chieng revealed in the comment section that he filmed the clip, meaning they're most likely on the film's set. Check out the footage below:
A post shared by Simu Liu (刘思慕) (@simuliu) on Aug 21, 2020 at 8:16pm PDT
A couple of weeks ago, set videos revealed a massive Ancient village being built for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, implying at that point, the cast and crew were already gearing to restart production. This video checks out with that, and while there was an unscheduled break in the past few months, it does seem like Liu is ready to step in his role as the newest Marvel Studios hero. Given its premise, it's safe to say that martial arts will be a significant part of the blockbuster's action set pieces, effectively setting it apart from what came before it. Aside from that, plot specifics for the project are still being kept under wraps for now. Nonetheless, this video should further excite fans with what Liu and Cretton are cooking for their collaboration.
Given the status of the coronavirus pandemic, it's still uncertain if Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will make its current release date. If anything, a change in Black Widow's theatrical roll out can once again cause a domino effect that could result in MCU's full Phase 4 slate pushed back. At this point, however, everyone is just optimistic that the current timetable will be followed. In any case, if filming goes well, Marvel Studios can come up with a teaser for the film, just so they can release something for the fans who have been starved with new content for a while now.
- Black Widow (2020)Release date: Nov 06, 2020
- Eternals (2021)Release date: Feb 12, 2021
- Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)Release date: May 07, 2021
- Spider-Man: Homecoming 3 (2021)Release date: Dec 17, 2021
- Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)Release date: Feb 11, 2022
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)Release date: Mar 25, 2022
- Black Panther 2 (2022)Release date: May 06, 2022
- Captain Marvel 2 (2022)Release date: Jul 08, 2022
Accidental geek who is perpetually curious, Ana rekindled her love for writing several years back and married it with everything pop culture. The result is a passionate young writer who could ramble (and of course, pen) about films and series multiple hours a day. She has a soft spot for The Lion King, old songs, and home design; is currently obsessed with old sitcoms (The Golden Girls!); and won't dare watch any horror films although she’s (ironically) dying to see one. Though a bit late to the party and was an actual Force non-believer, she now finds the Star Wars franchise quite fascinating (fun fact: it was a crazy Jar Jar Binks/Sith theory that drew her in).