Kevin Feige Addresses Simu Liu's Disney Comments, Scarlett Johansson Lawsuit

Following its Los Angeles premiere on Monday, Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings—starring Simu Liu and Awkwafina—will hit theaters nationwide early next month. Amid the MCU Phase Four entry’s rollout, attention has turned to recent earnings call comments made by Disney boss Bob Chapek. And now, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has weighed in.

Earlier this week, Chapek was reported to have described Shang-Chi as an “interesting experiment” when detailing the 45-day theatrical window release strategy it was receiving instead of the usual simultaneous approach. Liu later responded, writing in a subsequent tweet that he was “fired the fuck up to make history” next month.

“We are not an experiment,” he said. “We are the underdog; the underestimated. We are the ceiling-breakers. We are the celebration of culture and joy that will persevere after an embattled year. We are the surprise.”

Addressing Liu’s tweet during Monday’s premiere, per Aaron Couch and Sharareh Drury for the Hollywood Reporter, Feige pointed to “a misunderstanding” as being at the core of the remarks. He also said fans will find “proof” in the soon-to-be released film.

“He is not a shy man,” Feige said. “I think in that particular tweet you can see and I think everyone does, a misunderstanding. It was not the intention. The proof is in the movie and we swing for the fences as we always do. With the amount of creative energy we put in and the budget, there’s no expense spared to bring this origin story to the screen.”

Feige, at least briefly, also addressed the ongoing lawsuit from Black Widow’s Scarlett Johansson by expressing his support for “amicable solutions.” In July, a variety of industry advocacy groups—Time’s Up, Women in Film, and ReFrame—criticized what they described as a “gendered character attack” from Disney.