Wait, Was Deadpool Supposed To Be In ‘Shang-Chi’?

Marvel fandom had a collective meltdown when concept art by Andrew Kim, concept artist for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, started circulating on social media. The art depicts Deadpool brandishing his swords in the middle of a caged match at the Golden Dagger fight club in Macau, while Proxima Midnight defends herself.

Was Shang-Chi going to be Deadpool’s entry into the MCU? What kind of part was he going to play (I mean, obviously a potty-mouthed merc, but besides that)? Was Shang-Chi going to set up future Deadpool movies within the MCU? So many questions!!

Alas, it turned out that there was never even a remote chance that Deadpool was going to have a surprise cameo, supporting role, or grand MCU debut in Shang-Chi. The purpose of concept art is to establish the look and feel of characters, creatures, scenes, and environments. For example, Kim’s concept art helped the production team finalize designs for the Golden Dagger Fight Club so they could start building sets and designing costumes and makeup. Concept artists may include elements that aren’t necessarily in the story in order to establish the kind of general look they’re going for, but they’re generally not going to dictate major changes to the script. In this case, the inclusion of Deadpool was purely for aesthetic value. As Kim told IGN,

“Deadpool and Proxima were my idea to put in as I thought their dynamic fighting styles could be a perfect fit in the ring like that (you know, they don’t fly) and Deadpool’s red was a nice pop against the bluish background, so part of it was a design choice for this concept painting.”

IGN

However, the reason Kim chose Marvel characters specifically, instead of purely random monsters or fighters, was because including Marvel cameos was part of the concept. That’s why, in the final product, viewers were treated to a cameo by Wong (Benedict Wong) from Doctor Strange.

Some Marvel fans may be reminded of another concept art fake-out, when it seemed like we almost got a Rocket Raccoon cameo in Loki. Rocket and Loki, jetting around and wrecking havoc? Now that I would have liked to see.

Anyway, we’re sorry, Deadpool fans! There’s no Deadpool in Shang-Chi, not even in an alternate timeline. But if it’s any consolation, Andrew Kim has released more of his Golden Dragon concept art on his website, and it’s a beautiful sight to behold. Plus, Deadpool 3 is still on the way!

(image: Fox)