Marvel has been subjected to several delayed projects within the last year due to a variety of issues. The superhero studio has been pumping out content for years in rapid-fire succession, and the cracks started to show. Complaints of Marvel fatigue started popping up and Phase Five’s kick-off film, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023), had complaints of poor VFX due to rushed schedules and time constraints.

Now, with the ongoing WGA strike and seemingly imminent SAG strike, Marvel Studios has had to delay dozens of future projects, including upcoming Avengers movies, sequels, and MCU Disney+ series. As a result, it’s also left several characters and films hanging out to dry with no update, including the troubled Blade reboot, Shang-Chi sequel, Kang as a whole in the MCU due to the allegations against Jonathan Majors, and others.

However, one seemingly forgotten character just received an interesting update that could change their future within the MCU. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) introduced Shang-Chi to the MCU, setting him up as a solo act with the potential of joining the Avengers as he meets with Wong, Captain Marvel, and Bruce Banner at the end of the film as they try to figure out where Shang-Chi’s rings come from. While the film was pretty well received by fans, Shang-Chi hasn’t really been revisited as a character since.

While the film is expected to get a sequel in Phase Six, Shang-Chi star Simu Liu has confirmed that the project has also faced a series of delays in an effort to get off the ground, but is expected to be released sometime after Avengers: Kang Dynasty. The next major team-up coming from the MCU isn’t an Avengers film, but is, instead, The Thunderbolts, which is expected to be released next year. The Thunderbolts are a team including Black Widow’s (2021) Red Guardian (David Harbour) and Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), along with the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) and U.S. Agent (Wyatt Russell) from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Marvel Comics just released an updated Thunderbolts roster that could hint at potential appearances by other MCU characters in the upcoming film. The new lineup for the Thunderbolts team now includes Black Widow (who is deceased in the MCU), Sharon Carter, and Shang-Chi. While the film adaptation of the Thunderbolts is coming sometime next year, production hasn’t yet started on the movie due to the writers’ strike. This means that there is the possibility that these characters could make a film appearance to tie into their comic appearance.

Often, Marvel Comics will retcon, change, or launch new information to coincide with the events happening within the MCU, which has fans wondering if Shang-Chi and Sharon Carter will be included in the upcoming film. If so, their inclusion is being kept severely under wraps, even by the actors themselves. Unfortunately, we won’t know anything for sure until production starts on Thunderbolts, but it is a very telling change in the comic book lineup.
Do you think Shang-Chi will be included in Thunderbolts? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!