Who Should Direct Marvel's Shang-Chi 2?

As a film enthusiast who appreciates directors with diverse backgrounds and unique storytelling abilities, I find it incredibly inspiring to delve into the remarkable careers of these visionary artists. From Gina Prince-Bythewood’s balance of action and drama, Justin Lin’s high-octane blockbusters, Gareth Evans’ inventive martial arts sequences, to Ang Lee’s gravity-defying wuxia epics – each director brings a fresh perspective that breathes life into their respective projects.

Destin Daniel Cretton’s resume is quite impressive. Following the success of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Marvel Studios’ first superhero film led by an Asian cast, which earned over $430 million worldwide despite the pandemic, Cretton secured a multi-picture deal with Disney to write and direct Shang-Chi 2 and the upcoming Marvel series Wonder Man. Previously, he was set to direct Avengers 5 before stepping down from that project (now known as Avengers: Doomsday). Additionally, discussions are ongoing for Cretton to rejoin the Marvel Cinematic Universe as director of Spider-Man 4.

Despite director Destin Daniel Cretton being linked to both the sequel of “Shang-Chi” starring Simu Liu and a live-action “Naruto” film by Lionsgate, it’s said that Marvel Studios is focusing on “Spider-Man 4”. If production starts in early 2025 as planned, we won’t see the next chapter of Marvel’s martial arts series before 2026 at the very least – a full five years after the initial release. And if “Shang-Chi 2” is delayed until Cretton gets involved, that wait could stretch even longer.

Here are our picks for potential replacements:

Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead

Indie filmmakers Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead gained recognition among Marvel enthusiasts for their intriguing work on episodes of the Marvel TV series “Moon Knight” and “Loki” season 2, which delved into the psychological complexities of Marc Spector/Steven Grant (Oscar Isaac) and a time-traveling, sci-fi adventure through the multiverse with Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and the Time Variance Authority. Known for their sci-fi films “The Endless” and “Synchronic”, this duo also directed episodes of Marvel Television’s “Daredevil: Born Again” post a creative revamp. The initial glimpses from the street-level series hinted at what Brad Winderbaum, from Marvel, called the “most brutal, visceral” action ever produced by Marvel Studios, making Benson and Moorhead an ideal choice for the swift, punch-packed martial arts of “Shang-Chi”. The rumored title for the sequel (“Shang-Chi and the Wreckage of Time”) hints at a connection to time travel or the multiverse – a realm of the MCU that has already earned the duo a lot of admiration from fans.

Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah

Directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, commonly known as Adil & Bilall, are highly regarded for their blockbuster skills. They took over the action-packed Bad Boys franchise from Michael Bay and produced consecutive hits with the 2020 release of Bad Boys for Life and the 2024 movie Bad Boys: Ride or Die, both featuring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in high-octane, fast-paced buddy cop comedies. These talented directors showcased their unique stylistic touches in the 2022 domestic drama Rebel, as well as in two episodes of the realistic Marvel Studios series Ms. Marvel. In Ms. Marvel, they balanced the larger-than-life superheroics of Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) with more relatable, everyday stakes. Had the DC film Batgirl not been canceled at Warner Bros., Adil & Bilall would have likely brought a similar flair to that project as well.

Gina Prince-Bythewood

Similar to other directors on this list, Gina Prince-Bythewood has been associated with superhero projects that never came to fruition. Renowned for her sincere, character-focused work in movies like Love & Basketball (2000), The Secret Life of Bees (2008), and Beyond the Lights (2014), Prince-Bythewood was once connected to Sony’s abandoned Spider-Man spinoff, Silver & Black, which would have combined Silver Sable and Black Cat. She also directed an episode of the Freeform-aired Marvel series Cloak & Dagger in 2018 and garnered appreciation for her action-packed adaptation of the comic book, The Old Guard (2020) on Netflix. Her highly-lauded historical action epic, The Woman King (2022), followed. Next, she will apply her skill in blending action and drama to the film adaptation of Tomi Adeyemi’s novel, Children of Blood and Bone, which was initially slated for Disney’s Lucasfilm but has since moved to Paramount Pictures.

Justin Lin

As a fan, I can’t help but marvel at the incredible journey of Justin Lin, who steered the critically acclaimed Asian American ensemble film Better Luck Tomorrow at Sundance, and then revved up Universal’s street-racing series The Fast and the Furious with the Japan-set Tokyo Drift in 2006. Despite his return to the driver’s seat for 2009’s Fast & Furious, it was the physics-defying heist movie, Fast Five (starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and Dwayne Johnson), that catapulted the franchise into full throttle. The blockbuster success of this film transformed the Fast Saga into a powerhouse, with Lin directing the well-received Star Trek Beyond between Fast & Furious 6 and the latest installment, F9: The Fast Saga. Rumors swirled that he was in contention to helm Spider-Man 4, hinting at his knack for delivering smart, stylish blockbusters that resonate with both Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios.

Gareth Evans

In the director’s chair for both “The Raid: Redemption” in 2011 and “The Raid 2” in 2014, Gareth Evans has earned a reputation for creating intense and impactful action sequences that are both innovative and high-energy. This dynamic style was evident in his 2016 short film, “Pre Vis Action,” which he described as a fusion of samurai films and the Indonesian martial art, pencak silat. The Los Angeles Times lauded Evans’ visionary direction in the “Raid” series for its exceptional fight scenes, calling them “the most impressively filmed, acted, and choreographed sequences you’re likely to see on screen.” Fans eagerly anticipated the potential collaboration between Evans and Joe Manganiello, who was rumored to play DC Comics’ masked mercenary, Deathstroke, in an unrealized film.

Ang Lee

The two-time Oscar winner (Brokeback Mountain and Life of Pi) received his first Oscar nomination for directing the 2000 wuxia martial arts blockbuster Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, an iconic film of the genre that appealed to both Chinese and American audiences with its weightless, gravity-defying action (choreographed by The Matrix‘s Yuen Wo-ping). Some critics likened the romantic epic and its high-flying kung-fu fights to a comic book, a style Lee brought to 2003’s Hulk. Like Cretton’s Shang-Chi — a family drama first, and a superhero martial arts movie second — Lee brought (ahem) sense and sensibility to the comic book adaptation. Most recently, Lee helmed the ’90s-style Will Smith action-thriller Gemini Man in 2019.

2024-09-16 20:40

Who Should Direct Marvel’s Shang-Chi 2?