Awkwafina Learned Archery For Shang-Chi

Awkwafina learned archery in preparation for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. After much uncertainty created by the surging Delta variant of COVID-19, the second film in Marvel’s Phase 4 slate is now playing exclusively in theaters. Based on its opening night gross, Shang-Chi has the chance to outperform expectations. The Marvel film brought in nearly $9 million from its Thursday night preview screenings, which is higher than F9‘s $7.1 opening night gross from May.

As an origin story for its titular character, Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), the film explores the character’s past involving his father, Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung) who discovers the mystical weapons known as the ten rings and forms the titular organization. Shang-Chi’s mother, Ying Li (Fala Chen), and sister, Xu Xialing (Meng’er Zhang), also play important roles in the story as well. After running away from his family to San Francisco, Shang-Chi eventually began working as a parking valet with his best friend, Katy (Awkwafina), who is unaware of his past, but soon gets caught up in his family’s conflict.

Later on in the film, Katy helps defend the ancient city of Ta Lo from the Dweller-in-Darkness alongside Shang-Chi, Xialing, and Ying Nan (Michelle Yeoh). During this battle, Katy’s weapon of choice is a bow and arrow. In an interview with Screen Rant, Awkwafina revealed that she actually learned archery in preparation for the movie and shared her thoughts on the underlying symbolism there as well. Read what the actress had to say below:

I did learn archery in preparation for any archery scenes I had. But I don’t know if that was necessarily planned or done on Katy’s part, so I think the more important, underlying message there is, why not take the shot?

Awkawfina, whose real name is Nora Lum, has had an interesting career up until this point. She first made a name for herself with a viral rap video on YouTube and later began her film career with supporting roles in comedies like Neighbors 2, Ocean’s 8, Crazy Rich Asians, and Jumanji: The Next Level. She landed her first leading role in A24’s The Farewell, but Shang-Chi is undoubtedly the greatest exposure she’s had so far.

Considering her comedic background, Awkwafina’s Katy serves wonderfully as the film’s comic relief. Months ago, Shang-Chi‘s toys hinted at the fact that she would use a bow and arrow in the film. After training at Ta Lo for just a few days, Katy appears to be well on her way to becoming an expert in archery by the end of Shang-Chi. This, of course, will arouse suspicions that her next appearance will be alongside Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) and Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) in Hawkeye.

About The Author

Adam Bentz
(1120 Articles Published)

Adam Bentz is a movie and TV news writer for Screen Rant. From a young age, Adam has been interested in a wide range of movies and television, but it was talented auteurs like Quentin Tarantino, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Aaron Sorkin who ultimately sparked his interest in the craft. Motivated by his love for the screen, Adam studied creative writing with a concentration in screenwriting at Southern New Hampshire University.

After graduating, Adam interned as a writer with The Borgen Project, a nonprofit organization working to end extreme poverty. Other than writing for Screen Rant, Adam reviews films on his website adambentz.wordpress.com

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