In a world where it’s unlikely to see a Marvel movie fail, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings was set up for success, but man, did it blow expectations out of the water. A Marvel hero who was nearly unknown to many became the highest grossing domestic release of the year, outperforming Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Eternals and Black Widow. In turn, it was recently announced that a Shang-Chi sequel is on the way and will once again be directed by Destin Daniel Cretton. Simu Liu’s reaction to this news is actually perfect.
The 32-year-old actor went from being a star of an underrated Canadian sitcom called Kim’s Convienence to the global name and Marvel superhero he is now with the release of Shang-Chi. When the actor walked the red carpet of Spider-Man: No Way Home, he was asked about his first reaction to officially being a recurring Marvel character. In his words to Comicbook’s Brandon Davis:
I guess I wasn’t the most surprised given everything that had happened. But I’m so relieved to hear that he was confirmed to come back. Again, not a surprise. But it's so good to feel the engine turning again. And be like ‘Great. We get to tell more story, and delve deeper into the characters. And hopefully provide more of those badass fight scenes.
Simu Liu has definitely felt the hype surrounding Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings since it was released in September. The movie made $432 million worldwide in the pandemic era, and seriously impressed the critics and audiences alike. As Liu shared just a week following the announcement, he wasn’t surprised, but he’s definitely excited to keep on keeping on as the Marvel hero.
When Marvel introduces a major hero in his own standalone movie, typically there’s a plan to expand the role past one movie. The only time we haven’t seen a sequel spawn from a solo movie is 2008’s The Incredible Hulk, and that was the second MCU movie, at a time when the studio was still figuring it all out. The character rights issues with Universal has also played a big role with how Hulk has been used in the MCU.
Plus, the ending of Shang-Chi blatantly teases more from Simu Liu’s superhero. At the end, he is paid a visit by Benedict Wong’s Wong, who takes him and Awkwafina’s Katy into a portal to meet Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner and Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel to discuss how his rings emit a peculiar signal. It’s safe to say that whatever is brewing in the MCU next will include Simu Liu’s hero, including through an upcoming sequel.
That being said, it could be some time before the next Shang-Chi movie enters our eyeballs. The Marvel movies calendar is packed with scheduled titles until 2023 currently, but as Phase Four continues to unfold, we'll learn more about Shang-Chi 2's development. While we wait, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is streaming on Disney+, and the next Marvel film, Spider-Man: No Way Home, is hitting theaters this Friday.
