Written By Mikey Sutton • Editor-in-Chief • Owner
Marvel Comics’ Filipina superhero Wave will swim her way to the MCU in a few years. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings will open doors to a new group of Asian superheroes in the MCU.
Marvel Studios planted the seeds for the Agents of Atlas in the MCU even before Shang-Chi.
When Randall Park debuted as Jimmy Woo in 2018’s Ant-Man and the Wasp, the all-Asian reboot of Agents of Atlas hadn’t debuted yet.
However, later that year I scooped Marvel Studios was looking to cast an Asian-American for Kate Bishop, especially a Pinay.
I recommended Filipina actress Kate Valdez from the GMA Network for the female Hawkeye.
Bishop wasn’t a Pinay in the comic books.
In 2020, Marvel Studios cast Filipino-American Hailee Steinfeld as Bishop.
When the New Agents of Atlas debuted in 2019, speculation exploded that they were bound for the MCU.
I immediately started a #KateForWave campaign for Valdez.
Design Concept by That James Guy
She looks so much like the character that we used her photo for James Simon’s initial Geekosity magazine design.
Insiders revealed Feige was interested in bringing them to the silver screen.
Nevertheless, development hadn’t begun yet.
It all depended on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
In the comic books, Shang-Chi is a member of the group.
Sources indicate that Park’s Woo will recruit each member at a time; moreover, they’ll form like the Avengers.
Park won over fans on Disney Plus’ WandaVision.
Furthermore, with the success of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, there is now active development for Agents of Atlas as a cinematic franchise.
Filipina Superhero Wave To Make MCU Debut In Near Future
Writer Greg Pak and artist Leinil Francis Yu co-created Wave for 2019’s War of the Realms: New Agents of Atlas No. 1.
Wave’s first appearance exploded in the Philippines; back-issue prices for illustrator Mico Suayan’s variant cover soared.
The cover with Wave leaping from the water before the Philippine flag is now iconic.
The all-time biggest box-office hits in the Philippines are mostly from Marvel Studios.
Once Wave hit the comic shops, her MCU future was inevitable.
I’m told that the Shang-Chi sequel will begin introducing the Agents of Atlas with the Chinese heroine Aero likely first.
Wave is a water manipulator in the comic books; she is Pearl Pangan from Cebu, Philippines.
Casting hasn’t begun yet for Wave.
Related: Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings Star Wants To Join Avengers
