Marvel Studios and its parent company, Disney, are typically the best in the business when it comes to mitigating controversy and showing a unified front for fans. So, after the recent Scarlett Johansson lawsuit against Disney regarding “Black Widow,” it was surprising to see a little controversy arise between Disney CEO Bob Chapek and ‘Shang-Chi’ star Simu Liu over some terrible wording regarding the release of the upcoming Marvel film. But never fear, True Believer, Kevin Feige is here to set the record straight.
You may remember that recently Disney CEO Bob Chapek talked about the decision to release ‘Shang-Chi’ in theaters only after the box office woes of “Black Widow” and in spite of the rising COVID cases. The decision to release the film exclusively in theaters is something Chapek described as “an interesting experiment.” This seemed to rile up Liu, who didn’t like his film being called an “experiment,” given the cultural significance of the Marvel Studios film being led by an almost-entirely Asian cast and creative team.
READ MORE: ‘Shang-Chi’s Simu Liu Puts Disney’s “Theatrical Experiment” Comments On Blast
In response to Chapek’s comments about the ‘Shang-Chi’ release strategy, star Simu Liu took to Twitter to rebuke the idea of the film being an “experiment.” He tweeted, “We are not an experiment. We are the underdog; the underestimated. We are the ceiling-breakers. We are the celebration of culture and joy that will persevere after an embattled year. We are the surprise. I’m fired the f**k up to make history on September 3rd; JOIN US.”
As you might expect, during last night’s “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” premiere event, THR asked Marvel Studios’ President Kevin Feige about the whole “experiment” controversy and Liu’s reaction. Obviously, Feige is a man of calm, measured responses, so he wanted to bring a bit of level-headedness to the discussion.
“[Liu] is not a shy man,” said Feige about his ‘Shang-Chi’ star. “I think in that particular tweet you can see and I think everyone does, a misunderstanding. It was not the intention. The proof is in the movie and we swing for the fences as we always do. With the amount of creative energy we put in and the budget, there’s no expense spared to bring this origin story to the screen.”
Obviously, Feige is bringing up the point that ‘Shang-Chi,’ like all Marvel Studios productions, carries a huge budget and the full marketing power of the studio. He wants everyone to know the “experiment” comment is just regarding the release strategy and has nothing to do with the cultural significance of the first Asian-led superhero film from Marvel. Though, if Liu is able to drum up interest in the feature, I’m sure Feige isn’t concerned too much about how it happens.
“Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” is debuting in theaters only on September 3.