Shang-Chi director confirms that the movie takes place in the present MCU timeline

Shang-Chi is in a perfect spot to give audiences a glimpse at what the world is like post-Blip in an all-original setting.


The events of Shang-Chi will take place following The Blip.
The events of Shang-Chi will take place following The Blip.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is the first original MCU film to premiere in what feels like forever. This has led many to speculate as to when the movie takes place within the MCU timeline. However, because Disney has intentionally kept fans in the dark, no one has really had any idea - until now.

Shang-Chi is not going to be set in the past

The present-day setting allows Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings to push phase 4 of the MCU forward.
The present-day setting allows Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings to push phase 4 of the MCU forward.

In an interview with Fandango, Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton explained that the film is set "in the present day in the MCU timeline". When asked if this means that the movie is set in "post-Blip, present day", the director answered simply by saying, "Yeah, yeah."

So, if you're expecting Shang-Chi to take place either in the past or pre-Infinity War, then we've got some bad news for you.

However, this isn't exactly a problem. If anything, it opens Shang-Chi up to an entire world of possibility.

Because it doesn't have to worry about retconning anything, it can explore the past, present, and even the future of the MCU. Case in point, the timeline allows the movie to take advantage of what happened to the Ten Rings organization following The Snap and the results of The Blip.

With half of the world's population gone just like that, the Ten Rings organization had the opportunity to seize power in a lawless world. The Mandarin's terrorist group might have benefitted the most from the results of the catastrophic event.

If The Snap didn't take out either The Mandarin or Shang-Chi, the upcoming MCU movie has the ideal set-up as well. Of course, this is all speculation and we recommend that you take everything that we just said with a grain of salt.

Having said that, fans don't have to wait too long to find out how Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will fit into phase 4 of the MCU - the film is scheduled to premiere on September 3, 2021.

Don't worry folks. This is the real Mandarin we're dealing with here.
Don't worry folks. This is the real Mandarin we're dealing with here.

Speaking of Shang-Chi, what is perhaps the most interesting part about the MCU movie is Disney's theater-only release. The sudden decision to shift its release strategy comes just weeks after Disney decided to release Black Widow both in theaters and on Disney+ Premiere, which resulted in a lawsuit from Scarlett Johansson and subsequent ongoing legal battle between the two parties.


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Ray Ampoloquio

Ray Ampoloquio // Articles: 5844

Ray is a lifelong gamer with a nose for keeping up with the latest news in and out of the gaming industry. When he's not reading, writing, editing, and playing video games, he builds and repairs computers in his spare time. You can find Ray on Twitter and LinkedIn.
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