MCU News: Marvel Eye Donnie Yen & Ludi Lin For Shang-Chi Roles
Yen meets Marvel? Hell. YES.
Marvel might be keeping their Phase Four slate under wraps for now, but news is slowly filtering out regarding the first three films releasing after Spider-Man: Far From Home. Photos recently emerged from the set of Black Widow, while Chloé Zhao's Eternals movie also seems to be progressing.
News has, however, been relatively harder to come by when it comes to Shang-Chi, with reports few and far between after the initial announcement that Dave Callaham and Destin Daniel Cretton would write and direct was made. Now however - courtesy of That Hashtag Show - we may have been given our first inkling of who may appear in Marvel's martial arts epic, with Donnie Yen (Ip Man, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) and Ludi Lin (Power Rangers, Aquaman) apparently in the running for two lead roles.
According to the report, Lin has been lobbying for the part of Shang-Chi since December. He's by no means the front-runner, and THS even go on to mention Ross Butler as another potential candidate, but Lin's "extensive martial arts training" has supposedly gotten him on Kevin Feige's radar.
Now for Donnie Yen. THS claim that that their source has told them Marvel "hoped" to meet with the actor for an undetermined role. While it's unclear what kind of role Yen could play, the story does acknowledge recent fan speculation regarding the potential inclusion of the Mandarin in Shang-Chi, and how Yen could fit the the description of the "wise, old statesman and one of [the] deadliest warriors" given in old casting breakdowns.
Lastly, the report also mentions how Shang-Chi is likely to start production this November, which would preclude a 2020 release and more likely place the film in one of Marvel's booked 2021 dates. It's not as soon as fans may have hoped, but for now, Shang-Chi remains one of the more enticing prospects for Marvel's Phase Four calendar. Here's hoping more news is forthcoming as SDCC 2019 inches closer.
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Would you like to see Ludi Lin as Shang-Chi? And who should Donnie Yen play if he's involved? Let us know in the comments below!