‘Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ opens in a few months and, until today, we had seen practically nothing. Marvel has taken advantage the birthday from the lead actor, Simu Liu, to surprise us all with the release of the long-awaited trailer. A cash advance that promises abundant action, humor, excitement … and a great claim for some crazy Asian cinema as a server: the entry of Tony Leung in the Marvel Universe.
The real Mandarin?
A regular contributor to filmmaker Wong Kar-wai, Leung is portrayed as the hero’s father and also as a new marvel villain, leaving a first clue about the biggest conflict that Shang Chi will have ahead. Leung brings to life a character named Wenwu, a powerful warrior who has adopted many names over time, being also known as “The Mandarin”.
Let’s remember that the Mandarin already jumped from the cartoons to the big screen in ‘Iron Man 3’ (2013), causing a strong controversy among comic book fans for the freedoms taken by those responsible for the film. Thanks to Ben Kingsley Y Guy Pearce, Marvel and Shane Black created a huge surprise that divided the public. Now it seems that another version of the Mandarin is coming to us, perhaps more faithful to the comics but it is not so clear yet …
Or at least, they don’t want to present it that way yet. Which is fine because the movie opens on September 3 And there’s no point gutting everything now According Destin Daniel Cretton, director of ‘Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’, Wenwu is an original character created for the film although, indeed, it is linked to the mysterious terrorist organization of the Ten Rings, already presented in the first ‘Iron Man’ (2008).
“Wenwu could have easily been a heartless one-dimensional villain. Tony opened up this character to be an antagonist who has a profound ability to love.“declares Cretton. Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige adds that they haven’t looked for a “twist like ‘Luke, I’m your father’. Shang-Chi knows who his father is and is determined to leave that world behind before they drag him back. “
It is curious how Marvel returns to quote ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ although this time to discard the reference; the Russo brothers acknowledged having looked at the classic ‘Star Wars’ to orchestrate the devastating finale of ‘Avengers: Infinity War’. Whether or not the authentic Mandarin, it is unquestionable that Marvel has been right to sign Tony Leung, I am looking forward to seeing what he does with the character.