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Of all the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies' creations, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings may have the most interesting tale to tell. From a casting that started with a tweet to a pandemic shut down mid-production, the behind-the-scenes of Marvel's martial arts extravaganza is almost as interesting as the movie itself. And at New York Comic Con 2025, the Shang-Chi cast pulled back the curtains even further on the making of the film.

Specifically, they told us which (tragically cut!) scene was their favorite to film.

Let's back up. When we say "the Shang-Chi cast," we're specifically talking about Simu Liu and Meng'er Zhang - Shang-Chi and Xu Xialing, respectively. Liu and Zhang joined Popverse staff writer Grant DeArmitt (yours truly), on stage at an unmissable talkback panel, part of which included fan Q&As. It was one of these fan questions that brought up the subject of favorite scenes to shoot.

"One of my favorite scenes was the one that got cut,” said Liu. Then, to Zhang, “It was you and me at Mom's altar.”

“That was my answer too!” Zhang responded.

Hold on a second - a deleted scene from Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings? We had to hear about this.

“It was a deleted scene - oh, shit," Liu said, momentarily concerned whether he was allowed to talk about it in front of, you know, the entirety of a major comic con. After a second, he apparently landed on, 'yes,' which was fine anyway - as the scene is now available to watch on physical copies of the Shang-Chi home release. 

"Xialing and Shang-Chi [were] in Ta Lo," Liu continued, "When they had just arrived. And because our mother is from Ta Lo, there's kind of an altar - a shrine set up there, just as there is one set up in the Mandarin compound in the real world. The real world? Earth."

"It's a scene of the two of us," Liu continued, referring to Zhang, "We’re next to each other, kind of paying our respects to our mom - "

"And you finally apologize to me," interjected Zhang.

"Yeah," Liu continued, "I finally am able to, well, I try to apologize for not being there in your life, and for being away for so long. It was a deeply emotional scene, and it was also a scene where I just realized how phenomenally talented you are."

"I was about to say," Zhang agreed, "That one tear - I still remember it."

"My tear?" asked Liu.

"Right after your line,” Zhang said, though she didn't specify which. "Just that one tear."

Take note, Shang-Chi fans. Simu Liu isn’t just a champion his fists, but his tear ducts as well.

"And they cut the scene, goddammit!" Liu exclaimed. "What could have been."

What could have been, indeed. And we might add - with Shang-CHi 2 on the way, perhaps it’s more accurate to say 'what still could be?'

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings is streaming now on Disney+. Simu Liu's Shang-Chi will return to theaters when Avengers: Doomsday makes its way into cinemas December 18, 2026.

Consider this a meta post-credits scene for Marvel fans - the four key articles you need to read next to continue the thrills:

• How to watch the Marvel Cinematic Universe in release or chronological order
• The best Marvel Comics stories of all time
• All the MCU movies ranked from best to worst
• Our weekly Marvel insider's column, Marvel Matters