Shang-Chi Trailer Features Surprise Appearance!
Marvel Studios actually delivered on their promise yesterday, debuting an exciting new Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings trailer that introduces the newest hero to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Shang-Chi (played by actor and activist Simu Liu) during the NBA Countdown on ESPN.
Watch the Shang-Chi trailer for yourself below, and then read Marvel Blog’s breakdown of the surprise appearance that you can expect from the film!
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings Is Back!
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will be the first Marvel movie to debut in theaters in over two years, thanks to multiple delays on other MCU projects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although Black Widow finally bows on July 9th, 2021, it will be available in theaters and on Disney+ Premiere Access on the same date (although the IMAX release of Black Widow has an additional 22 minutes of footage for those who are vaccinated and can go to the theater), unlike Shang-Chi which debuts only in theaters.
Waiting for the Shang-Chi premiere like woah… Photo: Marvel Studios
The new Shang-Chi trailer is being released two months after Marvel put out the first look at the project for Liu’s birthday in April 2021, and the new trailer is even more action packed than the first!
The film will take fans to a new corner of the MCU, centering on the titular Shang-Chi, who is the heir to a martial arts legacy and the son of the villainous Wenwu (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai).
Tony Leung Chiu-Wai. Photo: Marvel Studios
In Marvel Comics, the hero’s origin story and relationship with his father is different than we will see on-screen, but updates were made in order to make the story more culturally sensitive. Shang-Chi, created by artist Jim Starlin and writer Steve Englehart, first appeared in 1973, which was “during the Bronze Age of Comic Books and during the boom of martial arts films in the U.S.,” according to ScreenRant entertainment reporter Jun Chung.
Special Marvel Edition #15 Shang-Chi First Appearance. Photo: Marvel Comics
Shang-Chi is breaking ground with Marvel’s first Asian lead, and the film’s almost entirely Asian cast. Other stars include Awkwafina as Katy, Michelle Yeoh as Jiang Nan, Fala Chen as Jiang Li, Meng’er Zhang as Xialing, Florian Munteanu as Razor Fist, and Ronny Chieng as Jon Jon.
“Why I’m so excited about this movie is that there is not one moment,” Liu previously told The Hollywood Reporter. “There are many moments, and there are many characters that you root for and fall in love with. It really is a celebration of Marvel and of superheroes but also of Asian myths. That’s something that we haven’t seen before in a superhero movie.”
Photo: Marvel Studios
The Abomination
Not only does the Shang-Chi trailer give us a slightly greater understanding of the literal power of the “ten rings” themselves (more on that later because this article is already packed with information!), it also features a surprise appearance from The Incredible Hulk!
In a fight scene with some cool looking cinematography, there’s a character that looks A LOT like the Abomination –yes, in the Shang-Chi trailer! Wait, what?
Photo: Marvel Studios
Den of Geek has confirmed from the subtitles that the character in question is in fact the Abomination! It seems as if the first-ish Hulk film may really have some connectivity to the rest of the Marvel Multiverse after all, and that’s exciting because that makes Liv Tyler‘s return in Disney+ She-Hulk all the more likely.
Photo: Marvel Studios
We haven’t really seen the Abomination in the MCU since a passing reference on Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. In fact, the last we heard about the Abomination he was locked up in a cryo-cell, however, because the Abomination (Tim Roth) is more than a traditional Hulk villain, we may actually see the character’s return!
As a test subject for an experimental version of the Super Soldier serum, he’s also a crucial tie to the existence of Captain America in the MCU (and the connection already has my mind spinning about potential connections to the Power Broker (Emily VanCamp) and her army of Super Soldiers, or a potential episode about toxic torts in She-Hulk that relates to the experimentation performed on Blonsky).
Sharon Carter/Agent 13 (Emily VanCamp) in Marvel Studios’ THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER exclusively on Disney+. Photo: Eli Adé/Marvel Studios
Based on the new Shang-Chi trailer, what are some of your fan theories about the upcoming movie? Any thoughts on the potential re-introduction of the Abomination into the MCU? Let us know in the comment section!
