Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director Destin Daniel Cretton shared his experience working with Sir Ben Kingsley on the film, calling it a highlight of his life. Kingsley first appeared as the washed-up actor turned fake Mandarin in Iron Man 3, where he was hired to portray the Ten Rings leader as part of Aldrich Killian's Extremis plot. The actor returned to the MCU in Shang-Chi following a seven-year absence after his last appearance in the All Hail the King One-Shot.
Following his role in Killian's plot and kidnapping from prison by the real Ten Rings Organisation, led by Wenwu, Trevor was set to be executed for his impersonation. But as revealed in a recently released Shang-Chi official clip, Slattery managed to impress his captors with his acting talents and was kept around for entertainment. Trevor later joins Shang-Chi and Katy, along with his Hundun companion, Morris, escaping the Ten Rings and guiding the group to Ta Lo. Kingsley's involvement in the film was initially kept a secret from audiences.
In a recent Instagram post, Cretton shared a photo of himself and Kingsley, along with a small personal comment. The black and white image features both Cretton and Kingsley standing together on-set for Shang-Chi, with the director's arm around Kingsley. Cretton wrote alongside the photo "Sir Ben Kingsley is in our movie! Watching this genius work was a highlight of my life. One of the best performers in the world, and such a good soul." Check out Cretton's original post below.
Cretton previously shared the story of his first call to Kingsley to discuss Trevor's return. Cretton stated that during the call, Kingsley acted out a full conversation between himself and Trevor, with the actor holding his phone away from his mouth to pretend his character was shouting from the other room. After acting out the discussion for two minutes, Kingsley thanked the director for the call and told him that "Trevor" was excited to work on the film, and that he'd call Cretton at a later date.
The return of Kingsley as Slattery is a welcome surprise for many reasons. As stated by Kevin Feige, Trevor's return in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings would allow the film to tie into the history of the MCU, acknowledging the Iron Man trilogy and addressing All Hail The King's ending. Despite the Mandarin twist initially being poorly received by audiences when Iron Man 3 debuted, many were fond of Slattery and Kingsley's portrayal of the washed-up actor. Not only did his return in Marvel's latest film allow Slattery to return, but also gave his character a good arc that can be tracked across his appearances, as Trevor develops from a down-on-his-luck, troubled scapegoat and front for A.I.M, to a unlikely companion for Shang-Chi who has grown into a better, more well-rounded person.
Source: Destin Daniel Cretton/Instagram
No comments:
Post a Comment