Over the past little while, Marvel Studios has made it abundantly clear that they’re making a big effort to improve the level of diversity in the MCU, though as of yet, we’ve seen few signs of how they intend to do this. That being said, it’s been widely reported that they’re fast-tracking Shang-Chi, which is said to be the MCU’s first franchise with an Asian hero at the front of it.
Chinese-American writer Dave Callahan has been tapped to the pen the script and we’re hearing that it’s going to enter production pretty soon. But the question still remains: who’ll snag the role of the titular hero? To date, a few actors have been linked to the part and today, That Hashtag Show has provided an update on the situation, revealing some intriguing casting news.
According to the outlet, Marvel is currently eyeing Power Rangers and Aquaman actor Ludi Lin for Shang-Chi. It’s unclear if he’s the current favorite or not, but he’s definitely someone the studio has their eye on. And why wouldn’t they? His career has been on the up and up as of late and he’d certainly be a good fit for the project, given that he has martial arts training.
Furthermore, That Hashtag Show also mentions that Donnie Yen is being eyed for a role, though which part it is remains unknown. And the same goes for the project in general, as we really don’t know too much about it just yet. Short Term 12 helmsman Destin Daniel Cretton is expected to get behind the camera though for what’s very likely going to be one of three MCU flicks that arrive in 2021, with the others being Black Panther 2 and Doctor Strange 2. That’s certainly a strong line-up of releases and hopefully, it’ll pan out that way.
In any case, we imagine that Marvel Studios will have more to say about Shang-Chi and the rest of Phase 4 at D23 in August, once Marvel’s Phase 3 has officially come to a close. Speaking of which, next up is Spider-Man: Far From Home, which swings into theaters next month, on July 2nd.