Slowly but surely, movies that were forced to pause production due to the COVID-19 pandemic are beginning to chart a course to resume work. Upcoming MCU Phase 4 movie, Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings has tentatively scheduled to resume filming in Australia at the end of July, Deadline reports–but will only be doing so with strict safety precautions for cast and crew.
Production on Shang-Chi was stopped back in early March after director Destin Daniel Cretton went into self-quarantine. The same week, Disney officially hit the pause button on all currently filming projects, issuing new release dates to accommodate for the delay. Shang-Chi was pushed back to May 7, 2021 while Black Widow was bumped to November 6, 2020, and the Eternals, which had previously held the November spot, was moved to February 12, 2021.
According to Deadline, all cast and crew traveling to Shang-Chi’s Australian set will be required to quarantine upon arrival, per the country’s guidelines. Marvel Studios is apparently taking “careful steps” concerning health and safety, but it’s unclear exactly what those steps might be–though it’s worth noting that Shang-Chi will actually be the second Disney-fronted production to resume filming, following James Cameron’s Avatar 2, which resumed work in New Zealand in June.
Shang-Chi stars Simu Lu, Awkwafina, and Tony Leung. The cast, crew, and original release date were announced back at San Diego Comic-Con 2019. It will be the MCU’s first superhero movie with an Asian lead.
Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings hits theaters May 7, 2021.
