Spider-Man 4"s Latest Update Is Great, But Now I"m Worried About The MCU"s Best New Character

The MCU's Spider-Man 4 has received a huge update in the form of its director, and while I am excited about the news, it makes me worry about the franchise's most exciting new character. Since the ending of Spider-Man: No Way Home, audiences have been patiently waiting for updates regarding a fourth movie starring Tom Holland. As someone whose all-time favorite superhero is Spider-Man, I have been anticipating news about Spider-Man 4's story as much as anyone else.
Spider-Man 4 has been all but confirmed since the immense success of Spider-Man: No Way Home. While the upcoming movie in the MCU was never given an allocated release date or many updates of any kind beyond the return of Holland, Marvel president Kevin Feige has been adamant the film would happen. In September 2024, I was excited to see that these teases were finally made a reality when Spider-Man 4's writing and directing team was announced. However, this announcement proved to be a double-edged sword, as it raised some worries I have about the best new MCU character.
The Spider-Man 4 Updates Are Great, But I’m Worried About Shang-Chi’s MCU Future What Does The Future Hold For Shang-Chi's Storyline? Close The update in question was that Destin Daniel Cretton will direct Spider-Man 4, with screenwriters Erik Sommers and Chris McKenna returning from the MCU's Homecoming trilogy. The upcoming Spider-Man film is clearly in good hands, with Sommers and McKenna knowing the MCU world inside and out, and Cretton having fantastic credits to his name. Not only did Cretton direct great movies like Short Term 12 and Just Mercy, but his recent efforts include the MCU's second-best-reviewed movie since Avengers: Endgame - Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Related Upcoming Spider-Man Movies & TV Shows: All 12 Projects Explained Along with more Spider-Man 4 and more Spider-Verse on the horizon, there are more movies and shows from the current Spider-Man multiverse coming up.
While this can only mean good things for Spider-Man 4, I am now worried about Shang-Chi's MCU future. Since 2021 and the release of the latter, little news has been provided regarding a sequel. Cretton was confirmed to write and direct Shang-Chi 2's story shortly after the first film was released, yet other than some confirmation from star Simu Liu, no concrete updates have been given in the years since. Cretton was initially set to direct Avengers 5 when it was titled The Kang Dynasty but reportedly stepped down to work on Shang-Chi 2.
This seemed like a positive update, that is, until the announcement of Cretton directing Spider-Man 4. Do not get me wrong, I am now immensely more excited for Spider-Man 4 than I already was, but where Shang-Chi 2 is concerned, the future does not look bright. The questions now remaining concerning the latter are whether a new director will be hired for the film, whether Cretton will do so himself after Spider-Man 4, or if a sequel to Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is in Marvel Studios' plans at all.
As of September 2024, Cretton is still attached to Shang-Chi 2, but it is unclear how Spider-Man 4 affects these plans.
Destin Daniel Cretton’s Marvel Change Could Prove Disney’s Overhaul Is Happening Disney CEO Bob Iger Could Be Finally Getting His Wish Custom Image By Karlis Wilde One thing that I immediately thought of when seeing the news about Cretton's directorial switch between Shang-Chi 2 and Spider-Man 4 was Disney CEO Bob Iger's recent MCU overhaul. At the beginning of 2024, Iger outlined his plans amid dwindling box office returns for the MCU, at the core of which was the decision to move away from smaller, lesser-known Marvel properties and franchises and renew focus on the strongest names in Marvel. In Iger's mind, the strongest franchises in question likely referred to Spider-Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Panther, and The Avengers, to name only a few.
As Marvel focuses on more bankable characters, the studio's priorities may have shuffled away from Shang-Chi towards Spider-Man...
Unfortunately for fans of Shang-Chi, myself included, this likely does not cover the new MCU hero. Shang-Chi and the Legends of the Ten Rings was a fantastic movie that audiences responded to. However, there is no denying that Shang-Chi is not yet a franchise that can stand tall alongside The Avengers or Spider-Man at the box office. Its $400+ million worldwide total during COVID-19 was applaudable, but Shang-Chi simply does not have the same pulling power.
Related MCU Slowdown Confirmed: Disney Reveals Plans To Reduce Movies & New Franchise Focus Disney CEO Bob Iger has revealed that the Marvel Cinematic Universe will go through some major changes, and they should address its quality issues.
With that in mind, it could be the case that Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings' sequel has been placed on the back burner. As Marvel focuses on more bankable characters, the studio's priorities may have shuffled away from Shang-Chi towards Spider-Man. This would certainly explain Cretton's directorial switch and the speed with which Marvel is reportedly looking to produce Spider-Man 4, with a shooting date set for early 2025.
It Would Be A Mistake For Marvel To Ignore Shang-Chi In The MCU Shang-Chi Proves A Success For Critics & Audiences Alike Close All of this is to say that I think ignoring Shang-Chi would be a mistake for Marvel. While, yes, it may not hit the same heights as Spider-Man or The Avengers regarding box office numbers, it certainly struck a chord with audiences and critics. As I alluded to, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is one of the best-ranked movies in the MCU, judging by critical scores on Rotten Tomatoes. By the same metric, Shang-Chi is the second-best-reviewed movie since Avengers: Endgame, second only to Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings' Reception
Budget
Domestic Box Office
International Box Office
Worldwide Box Office
Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
CinemaScore
$150-$200 million
$224,543,292
$207,681,342
$432,224,634
91%
98%
A
Regarding audience reception, Shang-Chi's numbers are equally impressive. Its 98% audience approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes is the joint highest in the entire franchise, again standing tall with Spider-Man: No Way Home which also holds a 98% rating. Similarly, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has an "A" rating on CinemaScore, again proving how popular it was with general audiences.
Marvel at least knows Cretton is a big reason for this success, evident by his further work on the Wonder Man Disney+ series and now, Spider-Man 4.
When delving into why the film received such a strong reaction, its likable aspects become clear. One such aspect is the fantastic fight choreography in the MCU, with Shang-Chi possessing what I think are the single-best hand-to-hand action scenes in the entire franchise. The cast was also incredibly likable, from Simu Liu's compelling, complex, badass titular character to Tony Leung's all-time best MCU villain. These elements blended seamlessly with the fascinating world of Chinese mythology to make Shang-Chi a breath of fresh air, one that the folks at Marvel would be fools not to capitalize on.
Will Shang-Chi Still Have An MCU Future? All of this leads to the question of whether Shang-Chi will have a future in the MCU. It is worth noting that the original plan for Avengers 5 gave Shang-Chi a major role before pivoting from Kang the Conqueror to Doom, becoming Avengers: Doomsday. Initially, this role in Avengers 5 was going to link heavily to a Shang-Chi sequel, though now the future looks admittedly bleak for the character. Avengers: Doomsday's story is now unlikely to include what was teased between Shang-Chi and Kang, and the sequel just received a huge blow due to Cretton's other directorial commitments.
Related Avengers: Doomsday - Release Date, Cast, & Story Details Avengers: Doomsday promises to bring an unprecedented kind of story to the forefront of the MCU, complete with one very important villain.
3 Despite Avengers 5's switch and Cretton's focus being placed on Spider-Man 4, there are ways Marvel could confirm a future for Shang-Chi. For one, a new director could be attached to Shang-Chi 2 in the coming months, rendering all of these worries null and void. Similarly, Cretton could confirm he still has every intention of directing Shang-Chi 2 after Spider-Man 4, with the only downside of this being the longer wait between the first movie and its successor. If all else fails, Spider-Man 4 could see the Web-Slinger team up with the Ring-Wielder, offering an MCU link-up for the ages.
Spider-Man Homecoming 4 Spider-Man: Homecoming 4 is the first sequel to the MCU's Spider-Man trilogy starring Tom Holland as the titular wall-crawler. After wiping his identity for the public's memory in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Peter Parker continues his crime-fighting adventures without the aid of Iron Man technology or the support of his former allies.
Cast Tom Holland , Zendaya , Jacob Batalon Franchise(s) Marvel Cinematic Universe , Spider-Man prequel(s) Spider-Man: Homecoming , Spider-Man: Far From Home , Spider-Man: No Way Home


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