The One Shang-Chi Costume Prop Simu Liu Wasn’t Allowed to Keep

Simu Liu reveals the one Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings costume prop he wasn’t allowed to keep and was kept a close eye on when wearing. Steve Englehart and Jim Starlin’s martial arts superhero spent 20 years trying to make his way to the big screen, with Marvel Studios enlisting co-writer/director Destin Daniel Cretton to give the character his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings explored the hero’s origin, updated to his being the son of Ten Rings leader and iconic Marvel villain The Mandarin and his efforts to live a normal life separate from his maniacal father.

Alongside Liu, the cast for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings included Tony Leung as Wenwu/The Mandarin, Meng’er Zhang as his sister Xialing, Awkwafina as his best friend Katy, Florian Munteanu as Razor Fist, Benedict Wong as Wong, Michelle Yeoh as his mystical aunt Ying Nan and Ben Kingsley as Iron Man 3 character Trevor Slattery. The MCU film proved to be a smash hit for the studio, scoring rave reviews from critics and audiences alike and hauling in over $432 million against its estimated $200 million production budget, becoming the ninth-highest-grossing film of 2021 amidst the ongoing pandemic. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has also become a hit since hitting Disney+ and Blu-ray, becoming the most-streamed film in the US in its opening weekend.

A few months after the film hit shelves, Complex sat down with Liu to discuss Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and its upcoming sequel. In reflecting on production of the first film, the star revealed the one costume prop he wasn’t allowed to keep was the pair of Jordan 4 Georgetown colorways he wore at the very end of the movie, recalling how he begged to keep them after production was over and the security measures taken to make sure he didn’t take them. See what Liu shared below:

“I also just want to quickly shout out this one shoe that I wore at the very, very end of the movie. I don’t know if anybody caught it. It was the Jordan 4 ‘Georgetown’ colourway. It’s super super rare. Yeah, I begged the production to let me keep the shoes after. They were like, ‘No fricking way in hell.’ [Laughs.] They basically had security watching me putting the shoes on and wearing the shoes back to my trailer. They’re just like, ‘Don’t you dare take that.’ But yeah, I thought those were great. I wish those got a little bit more screen time. I hope that Shaun will be a representative for all the sneakerheads out there. Hopefully, we’ll get to see that not just with his costume but just in what he wears in everyday life, you know? Hopefully we see him wearing some more heat.”

As many actors have begun fulfilling their dreams of bringing their favorite superheroes to life for the screen, many have taken to bringing home items from the sets of their films or even their full costumes. Ryan Reynolds has frequently talked about stealing his Deadpool costume after wrapping production on the first film, despite being asked not to, while more recently James Gunn has opened up about having to ask John Cena to stop taking his Peacemaker costume home during production on both The Suicide Squad and his eponymous HBO Max spin-off series. Though Shang-Chi’s full costume likely costs just as much, if not more, than the pair of Jordan 4 Georgetown Colorways he dons in the film, the rarity of the sneakers does make it more understandable that production wouldn’t let Liu keep them.

It is nonetheless charming to hear Liu express his hopes for Shang-Chi to become a “representative for sneakerheads” in the MCU going into future appearances. Though attention is generally drawn towards the accuracy of a comic book character’s suit, attention has slowly been drawn to other outfit features in recent blockbuster history, especially following the infamous pair of high heels Bryce Dallas Howard’s character wore throughout the first Jurassic World movie. With development on a Shang-Chi 2 currently underway, audiences will have to wait and see which famous pair of sneakers he brings into battle next.

Source: Complex

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Grant Hermanns
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Grant Hermanns is a News Writer, Interviewer and Hiring Manager for Screen Rant, having joined the team in early 2021. Way back in 2015 while still in his college days, Grant got his start in the entertainment journalism industry with creator-friendly site Moviepilot until it shuttered nearly three years later. From there he joined the staff at ComingSoon.net and was its Associate Editor prior to coming over to Screen Rant.

To say he’s a lover of film and television would be an understatement and when he’s not mass consuming either you can find him exploring the world of Dungeons & Dragons with friends or slowly making his way through his gaming backlog.

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