I am a little surprised that we haven't heard more about a possible Black Panther film from Marvel. I have heard of interest in such a movie for over a decade now, but it never seems to get off the back burner. I thought for sure a BP film would be part of Marvel's "Phase Three", but that does not look to be the case. It would be a perfect franchise to add, as it would be markedly different from the Marvel films that have gone before, but still be able to have strong ties to The Avengers. Hopefully, Phase Four will make the long-simmering plans a reality.
Wasn't Wesley Snipes attached to play Black Panther? I thought that was the early buzz around the character...I think it is a shame that we're very near a phase three and The Falcon is the only character aside from Nick Fury. Is Black Panther an FF character, an Avenger or a co-licensed character like Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver?
ReplyDeleteI think that the big problem of bringing Panther to screen is that he's a character with too many strings attached. Including him will imply the existence of Wakanda - if they want to stay true to the source material - which is kind of sore spot for Marvel.
ReplyDeleteThe big problem is that Wakanda has been written as a socially backwards but technologically futuristic society which will be hard to explain in a movie. Also the Wakandan characterization shifted over the years from the basic "we don't trust strangers" - which is understandable - to a more assholish "we are better than everyone else, hence we don't share a bit of our stuff".
The revelation that Wakandans had the cure for cancer and AIDS for ages and didn't share because they considered the rest of the world unworthy of them, pretty much tainted the whole deal.
Wakanda has already been established as existing in the MCU. In Iron Man 2 Nick Fury is talking to Tony Stark about other superheroes. There is a map that shows Wakanda as being a "hot spot."
ReplyDeleteHow they portray the country,of course, remains to be seen. As it is, in the comics, the main source of Vibranium, it may eventually come into play either on the big screen, or on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on TV.
Couldn't the problem be simply the name? Disney/Marvel might be afraid of legal challenges from whoever currently claims the mantle of the Black Panther Party.
ReplyDeleteIn the past, I have persistently requested a cover with as many African-American superheroes you could fit....so I'll take this one.
ReplyDeleteWraiths of Wakanda? Ish 718 has Rom, Spaceknight.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that Marvel's decision about whether or not to put the Black Panther on movie screens will take comics continuity into account at all. They are introducing the Falcon as a flying hero, after all, when in the comics he didn't fly until the Black Panther altered his costume with Wakandan technology. Before that he swung on a wire, a la the Black Widow.
ReplyDeleteTo put it bluntly, it's because the PTB in Hollywood think only white males can lead a picture. That's why you don't have a Black Panther movie, or a Wonder Woman movie, or a Black Widow movie, or...
ReplyDeleteLook at the statistics. It's dumb, but true.
Stumbled across the comment section by accident, 5 years later..A Wonder Woman movie salvaged the DC movie universe and has a sequel coming. A Black Panther movie was made, made over a Billion dollars, and earned Marvel Studios its first Oscar wins. A Carol Danvers Captain Marvel movie is currently out.
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