WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Wish Dragon, now streaming on Netflix.
Netflix’s Wish Dragon ends on a happy note, unsurprising given its fairytale nature, with Din (Jimmy Wong) and Li Na (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) working at his mom’s newly opened restaurant. In addition, the dragon, Long Zhu (John Cho), has finally found his purpose, so as both parties embark on new chapters, let’s break down what could happen in a sequel.
Long Zhu Finding New Masters
Long’s problem was that he was selfish since his tenure as an emperor. As a Chinese lord, he treated his family and subjects like objects, hoping they’d just expand his wealth and fill his vaults with riches. But he learned a lesson about selflessness from Din and turned down a chance to go to heaven, all to stay behind to help the boy.
As a result, he returned as a wish dragon once more, but while he has to find 10 new masters, Long is excited as he has a lot more wisdom and a heroic outlook. A follow-up can dissect some of these masters and how Long actually helps make them better people. It’ll be along the lines of Aladdin’s Genie, who was more virtuous, which will admittedly test Long as he’s never really been a mentor before. We can see his dynamic with a spoiled brat working really well and driving him insane after such a genuine soul like Din.
Long Zhu Making Amends With Family
Long had 17 wives and married them off to attain gold from other kingdoms. With his dynasty continuing, a sequel can see the gods sending his magical teapot to one of his descendants. There’d be no better person to pass down life’s lessons to than family itself, so this creates the best avenue for atonement. It’d redeem him in the eyes of his lineage as well, ensuring his legacy doesn’t evolve in the same greedy vein now that he knows better and can impart such knowledge.
A sequel can focus on the kingdom he handed down being modern and superficial, with a young master focusing on stuff like social media to relate to young audiences. Li Na was a fashion celebrity, so it’d be nice to have yet another celebrity, someone relatable to teen audiences, with a strong emotional connection to the dragon genie who needs to grow with him.
Completing Li Na and Din’s Journey
While Din and Li Na are besties again, the film doesn’t end with them pursuing romance just yet. They do love each other, though, so Long could return to help them fall in love. By bringing the teapot to them, it’d be a humorous complication, providing a story akin to Aladdin and Jasmine with Long as Genie, trying to put them together. Li Na could put duty first if she gets the wishes, and maybe try to bring her mom back or heal the world, which would leave Din wondering when he’d get his shot.
They could also face more goons who want the relic for themselves, similar to the villains Mr. Wang hired to recover it and rebuild his empire. Li Na’s dad could also get these wishes and try to make their life better, especially as he’s funding the restaurant. Business is booming again, but as Din and Li Na saw, Mr. Wang does have a dark side. Having another person close to them, maybe even Din’s mom or someone from their slums using the teapot would be equally exciting as they can try to show them the light as well — something Long would want as he can’t stand evil masters anymore.
Written and directed by Chris Appelhans, Wish Dragon stars the voice talents of Jimmy Wong, John Cho, Constance Wu, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Will Yun Lee, Jimmy O. Yang, Aaron Yoo, Bobby Lee and Ronnie Chieng. It is currently streaming on Netflix.
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