Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings was definitely a game-changer for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, particularly when it came to its incredible action. The movie wasted no time in establishing the fact that these fight scenes were unlike anything else we'd seen from Marvel Studios before, as evidenced by the battle between Shang-Chi and Razor Fist on the bus.
In a matter of moments, Shaun became Shang-Chi and was pushed to the limits by his father's villainous henchman in one of the movie's most intense, craziest sequences.
When we caught up with actor Florian Munteanu recently, he shared some insight into the challenges that came with shooting the scene. "Stepping into the bus, we rehearsed, I think, for four weeks with choreography. It was tough because a bus is generally very tight and very small," he explained. "You don’t have a lot of space to move in and, especially for a guy like me who is big and tall, I need my space and I need room to actually deliver those big haymakers."
"I was basically touching the roof with my head; poles were everywhere. From the first day, I remember this exactly, I told Simu, ‘Bro, we’re going to get injured so many times in this bus!’ [Laughs] He was like, ‘Do you really think that?’ I said, ‘Trust me on that.’ I already knew from when I saw the inside of the bus," he continued. "You know, when you get into character, you don’t think about holding back because you want to be authentic and real, so it was inevitable that we were hitting stools, and cameras, and poles, and everything in there."
"It was the sacrifice we had to make, and that we had to deliver, and I think in the end it was worth it. I’m very happy with the bus scene and how it turned out and I think we put our mark with that scene on the Marvel Universe, especially when it comes to fighting in Marvel."
There's no arguing with that point, and while the fight on the scaffolding made a similar impact, this encounter on the bus was one that made it impossible to blink for fear of missing the action.
Ultimately, Shang-Chi and Katy manage to overcome Razor Fist, but it feels like a rematch could be brewing for somewhere down the line. The villain has now aligned himself with Xialing as part of the new Ten Rings, so they're bound to cross paths again before too long, though Florian has made it clear that he has a few other opponents he'd be interested in squaring off with in the MCU.
Which of Shang-Chi and the Legends of the Ten Rings' fight scenes was your favourite?