Shang-Chi Producer Explains Why Wong Cameos Instead Of Doctor Strange

Every trailer and promo spot for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings has featured the money shot of The Incredible Hulk‘s returning villain Abomination battling Doctor Strange’s friend and confidant Wong in an underground fight club, but without veering into spoiler territory, don’t go in expecting it to be a pivotal part of the story.

Of course, Benedict Wong’s cameo in the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe blockbuster was spoiled a long time ago when he was spotted in Australia when Shang-Chi was in the midst of shooting, but if you stick around until the credits you’ll find out that he’s responsible for setting some major pieces in play for the future of the franchise.

In a new interview, producer Jonathan Schwartz was asked why Wong was chosen to provide the connective tissue between Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and the rest of the MCU at the expense of the Sorcerer Supreme himself, and he certainly came across as a fan of both the character and the actor who plays the role in his response.

“I think we all just got excited about the idea of Wong. People love Wong. We love Wong. Benny Wong’s the greatest, and we’re very happy with it. So we ran with the Wong of it all. We love it.”

Of course, that’s a lot easier to say than “Benedict Cumberbatch was shooting The Mauritanian and The Power of the Dog back-to-back on the other side of the world while we were in production”, but more Wong is never a bad thing. Not every guest spot has to be filled by one of the MCU’s top tier characters, something that works in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings‘ advantage, because the title hero is never in danger of being overshadowed.