The martial arts superhero film featuring the first Asian-American character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, along with a predominantly East Asian cast, has been compared to “Black Panther” in terms of its potential cultural significance.
Supporters of the film, directed by Asian-American Destin filmmaker Daniel Cretton, have launched multiple GoFundMe campaigns so that hundreds of children and their parents can watch the film for free this week.
The Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment and Gold House, a nonprofit that consults with Hollywood studios on behalf of Asian Americans in entertainment, held its second “Gold Open” screening of “Shang Chi” in the city on Monday. of New York after holding a premiere at the El Capitan Theater in Los Angeles two weeks ago.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the largest movie franchise on the planet right now, according to Gold House President Bing Chen, who said there are many things at stake this weekend for members of the AAPI community who want to see more Hollywood Asian American movies and TV shows.
“If we can show that we can really celebrate our own groundbreaking weekend through the world’s largest film franchise, this will open up other opportunities in other major franchises as well as in independent films, because AAPIs leaders, ”Chen said. CNN Business last week. “We’re two-thirds of the world and there are still people who don’t think we can open movies … A single movie doesn’t change the world forever, but it’s starting to appeal to it.”
Asian performance in Hollywood movies
“Shang Chi” is the latest in a series of films featuring Asian main characters to capture the nation’s attention at a time when anti-Asian hate crimes have been rampant. “Minari,” a film centered on a Korean-American family moving to Arkansas in search of their own vision of the American dream, was nominated for Best Picture at the last Academy Awards.
The honor came a year after the South Korean film “Parasite” won the top Oscar.
In March, Disney released its epic animated “Raya and the Last Dragon” at Disney +, about seven months after offering platform subscribers access to see the live version of “Mulan.”
The importance of AAPI’s portrayal is something that Chinese-Canadian actor Simu Liu, who plays the titular hero of “Shang Chi,” has been making clear since he was chosen for the role in 2019.
“When‘ Crazy Rich Asians ’came out three years ago, we celebrated it as the first studio film with a predominantly Asian cast in almost 25 years,” Liu told Variety earlier this month. “I’m looking forward to the time when we’re no longer celebrating the first ones. We’re celebrating the second, third, fourth and fifth. So I’ll take advantage of that moment for what it is. It’s absolutely that moment of division … But I hope there will be many later. month “.
What makes “Shang Chi” special
Martial arts witchcraft has been criticized as a stereotypical Hollywood trope of the Asian experience. But Ron Han, editor and head of POC Culture.com, a website that celebrates diversity in pop culture, says “Shang Chi” has something that most martial films don’t have.
Han launched his own GoFundMe campaign earlier this month so that Asian kids from his local Boys and Girls Club in San Gabriel Valley, California, could watch the film. He points out that the main American martial arts stars of the last four decades – icons such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Donnie Yen and Tony Jaa – are East Asians. He said Asian Americans really have a lot less representation in Hollywood action movies than most people realize.
“This film is definitely an Asian-American film and our community has been largely ignored because of the combination with Southeast Asia,” Han told CNN Business.
Disney’s challenge
Disney has received the warmth of Twitter followers in recent weeks for deciding not to do a simultaneous film and broadcast release of “Shang Chi,” as the studio did for “Black Widow” in early July. Disney CEO Bob Chapek told analysts that the film will have a 45-day theatrical window after its release on Friday and will be available on Disney + later. Some have criticized this decision for potentially compelling audiences to venture into cinemas as the Covid-19 Delta variant increases in some parts of the country.
But getting Americans out of their homes during a resurgent pandemic to go see a comic book hero that many have never heard of may be the toughest challenge for Disney and Marvel, according to ComScore senior analyst Paul Dergarabedian , who says both the studio and proponents of more Asian representation in Hollywood have a stake in Shang Chi’s box office success.
“If you have a bombing movie that tries to make a difference, it won’t make the difference you want it to make,” Dergarabedian told CNN Business last week.
Dergarabedian and Jeff Bock, senior media analyst for Exhibitor Relations, a research and data company in the entertainment industry, said a total of $ 50 million to $ 60 million is a solid benchmark to measure Shang Chi’s success. “Black Widow” set the bar earlier this year, earning more than $ 80 million over the first weekend in U.S. theaters, but that was before the Delta variant reached current crisis levels.
“A $ 60 million debut would be a good start for Marvel’s new superhero,” Bock said.
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