Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has gotten its first trailer, showing off the high-flying martial arts action and a new hero for the interconnected universe of Marvel films and shows: Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), who’s known in the comics as Marvel’s preeminent master of martial arts.
The trailer serves as a short introduction to Shang-Chi as he faces off against the mysterious Ten Rings organization and its true leader, the Mandarin. The Ten Rings have been a figure lurking in the background for the entirety of the MCU, first introduced in 2008’s Iron Man (and notably spoofed by a copy-cat group in Iron Man 3), but Shang-Chi promises to reveal the actual group for the first time.
The upcoming film also takes some inspiration from the more recent Shang-Chi series of comics, which sees the martial arts master trying to enjoy life in San Francisco away from mystical (and family) drama only for his old life to come crashing back.
Shang-Chi isn’t the first modern live-action martial arts-focused Marvel project; Netflix previously adapted Iron Fist into a two-season TV series in 2017, but that project was developed by the now-defunct Marvel Television, instead of Kevin Feige’s Marvel Studios. Iron Fist also suffered from numerous issues, including lackluster fight scenes, a bloated runtime, and a frustratingly outdated white savior narrative — all things Shang-Chi (with its considerably bigger budget, tighter cinematic runtime, and considerably more diverse cast and creative team) looks to avoid.
The trailer comes hot on the heels of Liu teasing the first poster for the upcoming film on Twitter, which also showcases a look at Shang-Chi’s full superhero costume (which notably doesn’t appear too much in the trailer).
Whoever said that you could only RECEIVE presents on your birthday? Today, I’m giving you your VERY FIRST LOOK at the teaser poster for @ShangChi and the Legend of the Ten Rings!!
Coming to theatres September 3rd (trailer drops in a few weeks).
WE’RE ALMOST THERE, PEOPLE!!!! pic.twitter.com/Kzgkg8djeQ
— Simu Liu (@SimuLiu) April 19, 2021
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is also set to mark Marvel’s return to exclusively theatrical films. Unlike Black Widow, which will be released concurrently on Disney Plus Premier Access and in theaters, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will debut in theaters only on September 3rd.
