Before you go any further, please note that this is what we call a “Connecting Imaginary Dots” feature. We are not claiming any insider knowledge; this article is PURELY speculation.
If you’re not familiar with the “Connecting Imaginary Dots” features here at Murphy’s Multiverse, these are speculative pieces, and so although we’ve gathered evidence to support our conclusions, we cannot officially or 100% prove them at the time. The speculation may turn out to be right or wrong, but we still think it’s worth sharing with you all for considersation.
In this Connecting Imaginary Dots, I will explain why I believe that in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Florian “Big Nasty” Munteanu is playing another mountain of a man: Black Jack Tarr.
Why do I believe this? Well, back on January 30, Murphy’s Multiverse broke the news that Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings would introduce 3 significant MI-6 characters: Leiku Wu, Clive Reston, and Black Jack Tarr. In the previously mentioned article by Charles, Tarr is described as “an elite martial artist who enjoys the thrill of the battle.” That certainly sounds like a good fit for “Big Nasty” doesn’t it? Tarr is a bit of a rough, gruff, hot head who starts out as a combatant to Shang-Chi, but later becomes a friend and ally. That would most likely mean the actor who played him would be filming a significant time, and judging by the panel above, it would require another “mountain of a man” to play the character.
In addition, the amount of time Munteanu has spent in Australia this year while they were filming seems significant. We know via his Instagram that he arrived in Sydney in mid January and was there until at least March 19th. It is shortly after he arrives in January that Shang-Chi himself, Simu Liu started following him on Instagram and liking and replying to many of his posts. Awkwafina too, started mutually following and liking his posts. All of this, and other hints and winks from Munteanu along the way, gave pretty much anyone who was paying attention the idea that he was more than likely in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
A more recent mutual follow, post, and interaction with Munteanu made me all the more suspicious that he is in fact playing Tarr. Check out the post below about his return to Sydney to finish what they started and the reply by actress Fala Chen who seems to have started mutually following him fairly recently.
What the reply and likes and mutual follow here tells me is that they probably have some screen time together, and if Fala Chen is indeed playing Leiku Wu, as we have surmised (and currently who she is listed as playing in IMDB), then the most likely character he is playing is Black Jack Tarr.
An edit to add: A quick search online puts Black Jack Tarr at 6’6″ and 300 lbs. Now, how many well established actors out there can even come close to that? Not many. A search for Florian Munteanu puts him at 6’4″ and 235-245 lbs. If they want to come close to “the man not even Kung Fu can smash” then “Big Nasty” certainly sounds about right!
