Marvel’s Shang-Chi Movie Super Villain Revealed:
Marvel’s first ever movie to feature an Asian lead – Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, is on track to be one of the greatest and most memorable productions of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It will not only feature a diverse cast but also feature Shang Chi as the lead, a superhero who has no superpowers but has the gift of incredible martial arts skills. But the badassery of Shang Chi is about to be taken up a notch. The guy will be facing off against not just the Mandarin but also a full blown dragon, if rumours are to be trusted. The legendary Super Dragon – Fin Fang Foom, who was the reason the Mandarin became a force of nature, is about to make his first MCU debut with the Shang Chi movie.
The movie has already roped in several Asian actors for several lead and supporting roles in the production. Simu Liu, a popular actor of Asian ancestry, will be playing the titular character Shang Chi in the movie. Complementing him will be Tony Leung, who will be voicing and green-screening the alien dragon Fin Fang Foom in the same venture. There are also talks of the Mandarin coming to the MCU again. We do not know if Marvel has recasted the Mandarin and Ben Kingsley no longer plays the super villain or if it is someone entirely else. Ben Kingsley was last seen in the “Long Live The King” Marvel shorts, where it is revealed that the impostor Mandarin was just a decoy and the actual ruthless, brutally savage Mandarin (also played by Ben Kingsley), too exists and is out for blood since he is as broken out of prison.
Fin Fang Foom’s role in the movie is still as mysterious and enigmatic it could be. Maybe he will help the Mandarin and fight alongside him against Shang Chi. Maybe he will appear in just a few scenes in the movie. The Alien Dragon was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in the year of 1961. Belonging to a race of extra-terrestrial dragons hailing from the Makluan planet, Fin Fang Foom’s ship crash landed on Earth and the ship, needing extensive repairs, decided to put Fin Fang Foom in hibernation mode until it was ready for take-off. Mandarin managed to infiltrate the ship, steal the ten alien rings that powered the Makluan ship and awaken Fin Fang Foom in the process.
In the comic books, the Mandarin and Fin Fang Foom are occasional allies but end up as enemies most of the times. Fin Fang Foom has always been the target of the Mandarin, who wants to control the dragon and use it to extort the world governments to cede him power and wealth. Fin Fang Foom although, has had his own plans of destroying and conquering the human civilization from time to time.
In several instances, the Mandarin teamed up with his mortal enemy Iron Man to put an end to Fin Fang Foom’s rampage. This time there is no Iron Man but there is Shang Chi. Maybe Mandarin will join hands with Shang Chi and ensure the threat of Fin Fang Foom remains contained.
The prevailing theory is that Shang Chi and the Mandarin are actually related as in they are father and son. But for now, nothing can be assumed with a hundred per cent efficiency. What is Fin Fang Foom’s actual role in the movie? Only time can give us that answer. All good things to those who wait!
Avengers: Endgame released on the 26th of April, 2019. The official film synopsis of the movie has been released and it states:
“After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War, the universe is in ruins due to the efforts of the Mad Titan, Thanos. With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers must assemble once more in order to undo Thanos’ actions and restore order to the universe once and for all, no matter what consequences may be in store.”
