MarvelBlog News for September 5th, 2022
Marvel has pulled off another brilliant bit of casting this week, as a returning face will appear in a new series. I’ll explain the genius strategy in the Labor Day edition of MarvelBlog News.
Return of the Kingsley
Source: Marvel Studios
Sir Ben Kingsley joined the MCU in Iron Man in 2013, a time before anyone could have suspected a Shang-Chi standalone movie would become a blockbuster.
Thankfully, that’s precisely what happened in 2021, when Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings became one of the few box office triumphs during the pandemic.
Marvel leveraged the Academy Award winner’s reputation to maximum effect in Iron Man III. So naturally, everyone presumed that Kingsley would portray the villain in the piece.
Shang-Chi (Simu Liu) in Marvel Studios’ SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS. Photo by Jasin Boland. ©Marvel Studios 2021. All Rights Reserved.
When word leaked that Kingsley was playing The Mandarin, diehard comic book fans bought the premise hook, line, and sinker.
Then, when we all watched Iron Man III, we learned that Kingsley wasn’t at all what Marvel had positioned him to be.
Instead, Kingsley appeared as a failed actor desperate for any part. So, he willingly took on the role of a terrorist named The Mandarin, assuming it was all fake.
Source: Marvel
Alas, failed thespian Trevor Slattery eventually learned that The Mandarin was all too real…and unhappy with the actor’s deception.
In Shang-Chi, the heroes accidentally discovered Slattery was imprisoned by The Mandarin, a fate he had suffered for several years.
Ultimately and maybe not even intentionally, they liberated Slattery from his prison, presumably ending the character’s story in the MCU.
Kingsley in All Hail the King. Photo: USAToday
NOT SO FAST!
Marvel has confirmed that Kingsley will return as Slattery in the upcoming Wonder Man project. And that’s a next-level brilliant choice!
In the comics, Simon Williams dabbles as an actor when he’s not performing acts of superheroism.
Apparently, Williams won’t be quite as successful in his upcoming Disney+ series but instead, someone desperately in need of a role.
Source: Marvel
Who would such a person naturally encounter during his auditions and bit parts? Why, Trevor Slattery, of course!
That sound you hear is me giving Marvel a standing ovation.
That She-Hulk Cameo
Source: Marvel Studios
Okay, I’m going to give you a warning. You should skip this section if you haven’t watched the latest She-Hulk episode, The People vs. Emil Blonsky.
Seriously, just scroll to the following subheading because I don’t want to spoil something for you.
Are you still here? Okay, wasn’t that episode hysterical??? I had to pause and rewind a couple of times because I missed dialogue due to laughing so hard.
Source: Marvel Studios
One of the highlights stemmed from a cheeky in-joke early in the episode. She-Hulk stated to the camera that her series wasn’t about random cameos.
Then, she recounted three examples of such cameos in the three episodes to date. And then a fourth followed!
Yes, Megan Thee Stallion appeared as a shape-changing Asgard who took on the appearance of the wildly successful musician to catfish a gullible guy.
Source: Marvel Studios
Hilariously, toward the end of the episode, Megan Thee Stallion then portrayed herself as a court visitor wanting to see justice served.
When the story leaked, the musician sounded gleeful on social media earlier this week. Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me if she was the leaker.
Ms. Stallion couldn’t wait for the world to know that she had joined the MCU! Seriously, you can read her comments about it here. Of course, if you google, you’ll find plenty more, too.
Source: Marvel Studios
As an MCU fan, the artist celebrated her achievement with her 30 million Instagram followers.
Also, her cameo earned such glowing praise that I fully expect her to return at some point, possibly even later this season. More likely, it’ll be in another series/film, though.
Recent MCU criticisms have harped on how Marvel hasn’t been as fun lately. However, this single cameo may have singlehandedly discredited that opinion. It was that good.
Marvel Miscellany
Source: TV Insider
Okay, I’ve got both news and rumors for this week. Let’s start with the rumor, which you should take with a grain of salt for at least another week, possibly longer.
Have you watched The Bear on FX/Hulu? It’s the sleeper hit of the summer, attracting plenty of buzz.
Apparently, Marvel has noticed and is considering its lead, Jeremy Allen White, as the aforementioned Simon Williams role in Wonder Man.
Source: Marvel
As someone who watched Shameless some, I cannot wrap my brain around this dude formerly called Lip becoming a sex symbol, but that’s what is happening.
We’ve also had a ton of new casting rumors appear for Fantastic Four, although I suspect many of them aren’t up to date.
Since Matt Shakman just joined Fantastic Four after abandoning Star Trek, he has a lot of influence here. Shakman wouldn’t take the job unless he knew who the cast would be or had some control over the choices.
Source: Deadline
As such, I’m ignoring the latest wave of non-John Krasinski rumors, even though I’m pretty sure the Reed Richards one is right…or at the very least was right.
Meanwhile, in confirmed news, Regan Aliyah has joined the cast of Ironheart. She’d previously been a child actor/performer with Disney. So, this makes perfect sense.
Source: Marvel
Honestly, you probably don’t know her yet, but her career will ascend when she appears in XO, Kitty, a spinoff of Netflix’s wildly popular To All the Boys I Loved Before.
Disney and Marvel are clearly banking on Aliyah being a bigger deal by the time Ironheart debuts.
Okay, that wraps up a relatively light news week. By this time next week, the D23 Expo will have happened, meaning we’ll have more casting and MCU Phase 4/5 information.
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – AUGUST 24: President of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige took part today in the Walt Disney Studios presentation at Disney’s D23 EXPO 2019 in Anaheim, Calif. (Photo by Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney)
Also, presuming no setbacks from the reasons I just mentioned, I expect a Fantastic Four casting announcement during one of the presentations.
That’s all for this edition of MarvelBlog News, have a great week Marvel fans
