BFFS: Meet Marvel Studios’ Katy & Shang-Chi
In an article posted on the official Marvel Entertainment website on Tuesday, September 14th, 2021, the two stars of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Simu Liu (Shang-Chi) and Awkwafina (Katy) shared their thoughts on the friendship shared by the pair of characters on the big screen… not to mention their real-life friendship!
That’s My Best Friend
As the many, many people who flocked to movie theaters to see Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings are already aware, the friendship between Katy and Shang-Chi is at the center of the newest MCU movie. From their dead-end job parking cars in San Francisco to an adventure that sees the duo traveling around the globe (and perhaps even to parts beyond), these inseparable friends won’t let anything come between them.
It’s a good thing that Katy tags along, too, as Liu refers to the character as Shang-Chi’s “rock.”
Katy (Awkwafina) and Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) in SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS. Photo: Jasin Boland/Marvel Studios
“Shang-Chi has been through so much in his life, from losing his mother at a young age, having gone through this awful training regime and all of that, to having been sent on a mission that he did,” Liu told Marvel.com. “To have escaped all of that and find some sense of normalcy, Katy brings out that softer side of him and that’s why he’s got to have his best bud with him.”
Photo: Marvel
And Shang-Chi brings out the best in his best bud, Katy, too. “When she goes on this journey, she realizes that the world is a lot bigger than she knows and it’s broadening her outlook on her own life, and her own priorities,” Awkwafina explained to Marvel.com.
Simu Liu and Awkwafina
While some may be tempted to speculate that the duo will end up romantically intertwined, that’s now how the two actors see it. Instead, the actors note that the characters have a strong platonic friendship of 10 years, a relationship that extends beyond the big screen for the two stars of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
“We really just wanted to show the world what a supportive, healthy, friendship looked like,” Liu told Marvel.com, explaining that he and Awkwafina had “old married couple” chemistry… but not in a romantic way.
Awkwafina and Simu Liu attend the UK Gala Screening of SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS at The Curzon Mayfair in London, England. Photo: David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage
“I don’t think [Shang-Chi] would be thinking about their relationship in a romantic light,” Liu affirmed. “There is so much more to that friendship and I love that we portray it that way.”
Meanwhile, both screenwriter Dave Callahan and director Destin Daniel Cretton said that their lives were filled with friendships with women, and they wanted to be sure that these important relationships were accurately depicted on-screen.
Photo: Marvel/Tumblr
Plus, as those who have seen the movie are already aware, it seems very likely that we’ll be seeing Katy alongside Shang-Chi the next time the character appears!
Shang-Chi and Katy
What did you think of the friendship between Katy and Shang-Chi in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings? What’s your favorite friendship in the MCU?
Let us know what you’re thinking in the comment section, Marvel Blog True Believers!
