Thanks to some help from a tipster, HN Entertainment has learned that the main production on Marvel’s Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings is expected to last from January to May of next year.

Some early filming on the project may have or will occur (this would explain the “November start” production reports), but it remains to be seen if that is for the actual film (Captain Marvel shot scenes early before the main productions started) or possibly a button scene for something like Black Widow.

However, the main shoot is going to kick-off sometime in January and wrap in May according to a character breakdown for the film as Marvel continues to find actors to fill the supporting roles (dates for scheduled reshoots are currently unknown).

This could also explain why director Destin Daniel Cretton told Collider recently during an interview that Shang-Chi wouldn’t begin filming until early next year.

Cretton noted that they plan to start filming early next year.

In that same interview, Cretton confirmed that they’ve indeed hired cinematographer Bill Pope (The Matrix).

The film’s script was penned by screenwriter Dave Callaham, who has worked on films such as The Expendables, Wonder Woman 1984, Godzilla, and Zombieland: Double Tap.

Production locations are said to include Fox Studios Australia in Sydney, New South Wales Australia (primary studio stage space) along with secondary locales such as Los Angeles, California and possibly Thailand/Vietnam as well.

Filming will be done under the working title of Steamboat (as confirmed by HN), a possible nod to professional wrestler Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat.

MCUCosmic recently reported that the film’s secondary villains will include Ghostmaker, Moving Shadow, Razor-Fist, and Steel-Claw (Tiger-Claw?).

FullCircleCinema revealed an audition tape with Kiwi actor Te Kohe Tuhaka (The Dead Lands, 6 Days, Monster Problems) reading for the part of Steel-Claw.

The main cast so far includes Simu Liu as Shang-Chi, Tony Leung as The Mandarin, and Awkwafina as the undisclosed female lead.

We’ll likely start hearing the names of the rest of the cast before the end of the year.

Once Shang-Chi completes filming Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love and Thunder will be moving into Fox Studios Australia with cameras set to begin rolling sometime in August.

Marvel Studios has set the film’s release date for February 12th, 2021.

SOURCE: HN ENTERTAINMENT