Eugene Cordero Upped to Series Regular on 'Loki'

He played Time Variance Authority employee Casey in season one.



Eugene Cordero has been reportedly promoted to series regular on season two of Marvel's Loki. Cordero played the Time Variance Authority employee "Casey" in the first season of the Disney+ series. He only made a handful of appearances on the show, so it's pretty cool to see him make the jump to a bigger role.

Eugene is one of my favorite actors working today. If you don't know him from, say, his fan-favorite role as "Pillboi" on The Good Place, you've probably seen him in a dozen other things, including Easter Sunday, The Mandalorian, Kong: Skull Island, Tacoma FD, and The Good Place, to name a few.

More here: 'Loki': Eugene Cordero Upped To Series Regular For Season 2

"An immigrants' kid punched Hitler in the mouth while cosplaying the American flag"

Gene Luen Yang on the corniness and coolness of Captain America -- the hero who is a flag on the move.



"The hero who dresses like the American flag. You can't get much cornier than that." As a young comic book reader, Gene Luen Yang didn't think much of Captain America. To be honest, he summarily dismissed Marvel Comics' star-spangled superhero as a dork -- and certainly nowhere near as cool as the X-Men.

But over time, Gene's relationship to Cap has evolved -- much like the flag, and America itself. In his foreword to the new Penguin Classics Marvel Collection edition of CAPTAIN AMERICA, the award-winning comic book creator shares about coming around to the appeal of Captain America's undeniable dorkiness, and his connection to Cap as a fellow child of immigrants. We're delighted to share Gene's foreword here:

'Shang-Chi' Sequel Officially in the Works

It's on: a sequel to Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is officially in the works, with Destin Daniel Cretton returning to direct and write. The filmmaker has also signed an exclusive multi-year deal with Marvel Studios and Hulu's Onyx Collective, and is reportedly in development on a new MCU series for Disney+.

Shang-Chi, starring Simu Liu as Marvel's master martial artist, was the highest grossing domestic release to date this year with $224.5M. Worldwide, the film has grossed close to $432 million. So it was safe to assume a sequel was happening. What I'm curious about is this other Marvel series that Cretton is developing.

I'd love to see a Ten Rings series focusing on Xialing, as teased -- SPOILER ALERT -- in the Shang-Chi post-credits scene. But who knows? According to Variety, the series is rumored to be a comedy.

More here: ‘Shang-Chi’ Sequel in the Works With Director Destin Daniel Cretton Returning

They Call Us Bruce 133: They Call Us Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Jeff Yang and Phil Yu present an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America.



What's up, podcast listeners? We've got another episode of our podcast They Call Us Bruce. (Almost) each week, my good friend, writer/columnist Jeff Yang and I host an unfiltered conversation about what's happening in Asian America, with a strong focus on media, entertainment and popular culture.

In this episode, we welcome our old pals Rebecca Sun of The Hollywood Reporter and Dino-Ray Ramos of Diaspora for a spoiler-filled debrief and discussion of Marvel's Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. There are many, many mispronunciations.

Is Big Hero 6 Coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Rumor has it, characters from 'Big Hero 6' will make their live-action debut in the MCU.



Big Hero 6 Characters Coming To The MCU
This is an entirely unconfirmed rumor, but according to The DisInsider, characters from Disney's Big Hero 6 will be making their live-action debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Which characters? Hiro Hamada? Baymax, surely. Details are scant, if this is to be believed at all. The 2014 animated feature, loosely based on the Marvel Comics miniseries of the same name, followed the adventures of a high-tech superteam in the hybrid city of San Fransokyo. It was followed by Disney animated series, which recently aired its final episode. Again, this is just a rumor, but it would be cool as hell to see these characters make the leap to live action.

Randall Park joins the cast of Marvel's 'WandaVision'

'Fresh Off the Boat' star will reprise his role as Agent Jimmy Woo.



Jimmy Woo will be back! Randall Park will return to the Marvel universe in the upcoming Disney+ series WandaVision as FBI Agent Jimmy Woo, reprising his role from Ant-Man and the Wasp.

Details are scant, but the series will star Paul Bettany and Elizabeth Olsen reprising their roles as Vision and the Scarlet Witch from the Marvel film franchise. And it's apparently going to be weird.

Marvel made the casting announcement Friday at the D23 Expo. The cast will also include Kat Dennings reprising her role as Darcy Lewis from the Thor movies, and Kathryn Hahn as a "nosy neighbor."

More here: Kat Dennings, Randall Park, and Kathryn Hahn join Disney+'s WandaVision

Henry Golding rumored to play villain in 'Black Panther 2'?

Rumor has it, the 'Crazy Rich Asians' star is being considered to play Namor the Sub-Mariner.



Wait, more Asians in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? No, I'm not talking about Shang-Chi. We covered that. I'm talking about rumors that Henry Golding might star as the new villain in Black Panther 2.

Crazy Rich Asians Star Reportedly Being Eyed For Black Panther 2 Villain

This is rumors of the rumorest kind, but rumor has it that Henry Golding, star of Crazy Rich Asians, is being considered for the role of Namor the Sub-Mariner in the sequel to Ryan Coogler's global hit 2018 movie.

Simu Liu was "in his underwear, eating shrimp crackers" when he got the call to play Shang-Chi

'Kim's Convenience' star will play the title role in Marvel's 'Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.'



Unless you've been phone-less and sequestered away at summer camp, you've probably heard that Simu Liu is Shang-Chi. Last weekend at Comic-Con, it was officially announced that the Canadian actor would play the title role of Marvel's Master of Kung Fu in the upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Not bad for a former accountant. Liu, who stars as Jung in the hit Canadian sitcom Kim's Convenience, has always dreamed of playing a superhero -- as a kid, he wanted to be a Power Ranger -- and had been dropping not-so-subtle shirtless hints at Marvel for years, via social media, about wanting play Shang-Chi. All that campaigning worked. At least, it didn't hurt. Last week, his lifelong dream became a reality.

Two days after Liu screen-tested for the role of Shang-Chi, he was "at home in his underwear, eating shrimp crackers" when received a call from Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige with the big news: not only had he gotten the part, but he would have to be in San Diego in four days for the big announcement in Hall H.

Simu Liu to star as Marvel's 'Shang-Chi'

'Kim's Convenience' actor will play the Master of Kung Fu in 'Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings.'



It's official. We have a Shang-Chi. Simu Liu will star as Marvel's Master of Kung-Fu in Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

The casting was announced Saturday afternoon at Marvel's highly anticipated Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con, in which the studio announced continuing plans for Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The cast of Shang Chi will also include Awkwafina and Tony Leung. Exclamation points!

Liu, who hails from Toronto, is best known for playing Jung on the hit Canadian sitcom Kim's Convenience, which recently wrapped its fourth season. He's also had various guest starring and recurring roles on Taken, The Expanse, Blood and Water, Fresh Off The Boat, and several Wong Fu films, among others.

And if you're wondering if Simu's got the moves to play Shang Chi, yeah, he's got the moves.

Shang-Chi will be Marvel's first Asian superhero movie

The studio has hired Dave Callaham to write the screenplay.



At long last, an Asian superhero is getting their own Marvel movie. Marvel Studios is fast-tracking Shang-Chi, aka The Master of Kung Fu, to be its first superhero movie tentpole franchise with an Asian protagonist.

The studio has reportedly set Dave Callaham, who is Chinese American, to write the screenplay, and is looking for an Asian or Asian American director to helm the potential blockbuster.

According to Deadline, they're looking to give Shang-Chi the Black Panther treatment: "introduce a new hero who blends Asian and Asian American themes, crafted by Asian and Asian American filmmakers."

More here: 'Shang-Chi' Marvel's First Asian Film Superhero Franchise; Dave Callaham Scripting, Search On For Director Of Asian Descent

Chloe Zhao to direct Marvel's 'The Eternals'

Based on Jack Kirby's cosmic superhero team.



Filmmaker Chloe Zhao, best known for the acclaimed indie features The Rider and Songs My Brothers Taught Me, has been tapped direct Marvel's next potential franchise, The Eternals.

Marvel Studios' 'The Eternals' Finds Its Director With Chloe Zhao

Based on characters created by Jack Kirby in 1976, the superhero team adventure centers on the super-powered and near-immortal beings known as Eternals and a more villainous off-shoot know as the Deviants that were created by cosmic beings known as Celestials.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, one aspect to the story involves the love story between Ikaris, a man fueled by cosmic energy, and Sersi, who relishes moving amongst humans.

More here: Marvel’s ‘The Eternals’ Taps ‘The Rider’ Director Chloe Zhao

First Look at Gemma Chan in 'Captain Marvel'

'Crazy Rich Asians' star plays Minn-Erva in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's first solo female-led movie.



Entertainment Weekly's latest cover story drops a huge first look at the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movie Captain Marvel, showing off star Brie Larson in full-on superhero glory.

Brie Larson takes flight as Captain Marvel on this week's EW cover

Set in the 1990s, the origin story follows Carol Danvers, an Air Force pilot who becomes one of the universe's most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races.

EW's feature includes a gallery of ten exclusive images from Captain Marvel -- including our first glimpse of Gemma Chan as the very blue, rather badass-looking alien Minn-Erva.

This is What Marvel Executive Jeph Loeb Wore to the Iron Fist Panel at San Diego Comic-Con

By Jenn Fang. Cross-Posted from Reappropriate.



Marvel is quickly making a name for itself as the comic book company of unadulterated racial insensitivity and Orientalism.

While comic book fans from around the world gather in San Diego this weekend at the annual San Diego Comic-Con, attendees to the Marvel's Iron Fist panel bore witness to a breath-takingly boorish stunt by Marvel Television head, Jeph Loeb. To kick off the panel, Loeb appeared to introduce the second season of the Netflix television show. In apparent reference to criticism of the show's first season, Loeb came on stage dressed as Daniel-San from The Karate Kid -- complete with karate gi and headband -- and joked that he had trained with Mr. Miyagi in preparation for hostile fans at the panel. Shortly thereafter, actor Jessica Henwick (Colleen Wing) -- who may or may not have been in on some sort of pre-scripted act with Loeb -- demanded that Loeb remove the outfit, and Loeb obliged.

There is nothing that excuses the racial insensitivity of this pointless and ugly stunt.

First look at Randall Park in Ant-Man and the Wasp

'Fresh Off The Boat' star plays Agent Jimmy Woo in the superhero sequel.



Here you go, fellow fanboys. The internet has given us our first behind-the-scenes look at Randall Park as Jimmy Woo in this summer's forthcoming Marvel movie Ant-Man and the Wasp.

The photo, posted to Reddit over the weekend, shows Park alongside star Paul Rudd, who plays Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man. At first glance, it looks a little like Paul Rudd just woke up and wandered on to the set of Fresh Off The Boat. You can kind of imagine Jessica, Eddie, Emery, Evan and Grandma just out of the frame.

Badass action figure reimagines Captain America as samurai

Samurai Captain America Meisho Manga Realization Action Figure by Bandai Tamashii Nations



What do you get when you mix Captain America with a samurai warrior? Wait, why would you do such a thing? It does not matter. It has been done. The Samurai Captain America Meisho Manga Realization Action Figure from Bandai Tamashii Nations re-imagines Marvel's star-spangled superhero as a samurai warrior.

Standing about 6 9/10-inches, Samurai Captain America features a distinctive winged helmet and scale armor inspired by Cap's traditional red, white and blue Nazi-kicking super-uniform, remixed by sculptor Takeyuki Takeya. His chest star emblem is removable and becomes a throwing star. The figure includes four optional hands, shield parts and sword parts.

The Marvel Samurai Captain America Meisho Manga Realization Action Figure will be available in February 2018. You can pre-order it now for $89.99 from Entertainment Earth.

Here are some more photos of the figure:

Five Showrunners Who Could Have Gotten Iron Fist Right

By Keith Chow. Cross-Posted from The Nerds of Color.



Three years ago, when I initially wrote about casting an Asian American in the lead role on Iron Fist, I had no idea the NOC would become ground zero for the #AAIronFist movement. I just never thought an Asian American Danny Rand was that radical a notion! Now that we're on the eve of the show's debut on Netflix -- in addition to its star's recent Twitter tantrum -- years-old arguments are starting to resurface on twitter and elsewhere. Coupled with early reviews savaging the series, I figured now was as good a time as any to resurrect one more Iron Fist thinkpiece before (hopefully) never having to talk about this goddamn show ever again.

Marvel's Asian American superheroes team up... for karaoke?

Totally Awesome Hulk #15 is Marvel's most unapologetically Asian American comic book issue of all time.



This is a dire situation that needs the attention of Marvel Comics' greatest Asian American superheroes! Amadeus Cho -- aka The Totally Awesome Hulk -- Ms. Marvel, Silk, Shang Chi, Jimmy Woo and Jake Oh have answered the call to action and assembled... at a bone marrow donor registration drive?

That's the opening scene of Totally Awesome Hulk #15, which is not only totally awesome, but quite possibly the most unapologetically Asian American issue of a comic book that Marvel Comics has ever published.

Starting with that bone marrow donor drive. As you may know, ethnicity matters when searching for a life-saving bone marrow match, and unfortunately, Asian Americans are seriously underrepresented on the National Marrow Donor Registry. And now you know. You can thank writer Greg Pak for that.

Marvel's Most Epic Asian American Superhero Team-Up Ever

Greg Pak assembles Amadeus Cho, Ms. Marvel, Shang Chi, Silk and more in Totally Awesome Hulk #15.



Ms. Marvel! Shang Chi! Silk! Amadeus Cho! Has there ever been such an awesome assemblage of Asian American superheroes under the banner of Marvel Comics? Possibly probably not... until now.

Writer Greg Pak recently teased the upcoming cover of Totally Awesome Hulk #15, suggesting that this is the most significant grouping of Asian American superheroes that has ever starred in a mainstream comic book.

In Totally Awesome Hulk #15, kid genius Amadeus Cho -- aka The Hulk -- is slowly learning how to become a team player, but has to learn fast when Ms. Marvel, Shang Chi, Silk and a host of other heroes come to town.

Reviewing the Reviews of Marvel’s Doctor Strange

By Shaun Lau. Cross-Posted from The Nerds of Color



Six months and change after the release of its first trailer -- and therefore about the same amount of time since co-writer C. Robert Cargill's infamous "[t]he social justice warriors were going to get mad at us for something this week" rebuttal to Asian American critics of the film's whitewashing -- the initial reviews are in for Doctor Strange, and they're not encouraging.

Oh, the movie? Actually, the critics seem to like it just fine. Being The Nerds of Color, however, we’re interested in looking at a different metric. Doctor Strange's whitewashing of primary character The Ancient One was, after all, one of the driving forces behind the hashtag and rallying cry #whitewashedOUT in May.

So no, this isn’t a review of Doctor Strange the film, but a review of the reviews of the film, using a simple standard: how accurately and humanely did each review portray Asian American dissent over the whitewashing of The Ancient One?

More Bald Tilda (and Wong!) in the new 'Dr. Strange' trailer

Director Scott Derrickson says he feels "tremendous empathy" for Asian American audiences.



Over the weekend, as part of its barrage of content reveals at San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel dropped the second trailer for Doctor Strange. Benedict Cumberbatch stars as Dr. Stephen Strange, who journeys to Mystical Asia to learn Mystical Asian Stuff, and eventually fights evil with Mystical Asian Stuff.

The first teaser trailer gave us a glimpse of Tilda Swinton in all her baldness as the Sorcerer Supreme's mentor, The Ancient One, who has been traditionally depicted in the comic books as an old-ass mystical Asian man. Whatever you want to call it -- whitewashing, racebending, yellowface -- that shit looks pretty wack.

Well, there's more bald wackness where that came from in the latest trailer: