Marvel Studios' BLACK PANTHER..L to R: Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) and T'Challa/Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman)..Photo: Matt Kennedy..©Marvel Studios 2018
After making a major splash with his crucial but still tantalizing appearance in “Captain America: Civil War,” Black Panther – also known as T’Challa, the newly crowned king of the mysterious African nation of Wakanda and its superheroic protector – immediately became one of the most anticipated characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to headline his own solo film.
Factoring in that the hero was also one of the very first and most high-profile African American superheroes in the popular consciousness, and suddenly “Black Panther,” directed and co-written by award-winning filmmaker Ryan Coogler, was among the most buzzed about films of 2018 – despite Marvel Studios shrouding the film in an even greater cloud of secrecy than it usually employs, in keeping with Wakanda’s own mystique.
Fandango, however, was on hand on the film’s Atlanta set nearly a year ago, and with the help of the cast and creative team gave provide a more focused sense of exactly who “Black Panther’s” heroes and villains are.
“Now we answer the questions,” says producer Nate Moore. “What happens when he goes home? Who rules Wakanda? How does Wakanda now deal with the loss of a king who was a fair king, who people seemed to like? And is T’Challa ready to be the king of Wakanda?”
“That’s the big question: can you be a leader for a country and still be a hero?” says Moore, who reveals that due to Wakanda’s stringent agenda of isolation and secrecy even T’Challa is unsure of the answer. “This is a guy who wasn’t planning to be king any time soon – he’s sort of being thrust into a leadership position almost before his time, so he’s not even sure if he’s the right leader for Wakanda.”
Marvel Studios' BLACK PANTHER..Black Panther/T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman)..Ph: Film Frame..©Marvel Studios 2018
Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman)
Where we re-meet T’Challa: Boseman, of course, originated the role of the character in “Civil War,” and the film will flesh out the sense that while his father T’Chaka was king, T’Challa has already inherited the traditional mantle of Black Panther, but remains shaken to the core by the sudden murder of his father.
“It’s shortly after ‘Civil War’ has ended, so he’s still mourning,” says Boseman . “There’s unrest in Wakanda, so what he’s dealing with his being the king is making the transition to filling the footsteps of his father, so it’s probably going to feel like it’s more about the political unrest than the superhero, initially.”
How T’Challa’s fitting into the role of king and superhero: “He’s been prepared for it his whole life – he’s groomed, so to speak, to do it,” Boseman reveals, but says that mentally T’Challa was unprepared to have the mantle of king thrust so suddenly and tragically upon him.
“If his father had decided that he was going to step down – ‘I’m too old, I can’t do it anymore’ – then that would be a different scenario,” says the actor. “But because he died in the last movie I think the transition has to do with that mourning process and just the mental transition.”
The new sides of T’Challa: Boseman says Black Panther’s relatively limited screen time in “Civil War” allowed for entirely unseen aspects of the hero to be explored, “even down to accent and what his sense of humor is, which actually develops more in this movie, because in the last movie he was pretty focused on what he had to do so there was no time to make any jokes. But in this one you’re seeing him around in his more natural environment and around people that he knows – you are different according to the people you are around.”
Marvel Studios' BLACK PANTHER..Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan)..Photo: Matt Kennedy..©Marvel Studios 2018
Eric Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan)
What Killmonger is about: Every hero needs a formidable antagonist, and in this case T’Challa faces someone who’s as intimately invested in his homeland as he is. “Killmonger sees Wakanda as something that could be used differently than it currently is in the Marvel Cinematic Universe,” says Moore, “and that puts him directly at odds with T’Challa.”
“He’s a revolutionary,” says Michael B. Jordan, who admittedly struggles with what he can reveal about the film’s central antagonist without spoiling his mystique. “Killmonger is very selfless. I think he’s always looking at the bigger picture, since he was really young, which is why he’s a great thinker and a great strategist, because he’s had time to look at the big picture and try to figure it out. And to the best of his ability, I feel like he figured out – it makes sense to him.”
Jordan reveals that Killmonger, who has specific interests in Wakanda, has long been preparing himself to come into conflict with the Black Panther. “it’s always interesting to train for an enemy you’ve never met before, so it’s a lot of studying him from afar,” says the actor. “He’s very patient. He’s a thinker. He’s really good at chess, and he was waiting for his perfect time to pop up.”
Why Killmonger isn’t exactly a villain: “Hopefully Killmonger is somebody you guys can root for,” says Jordan of the character’s still-mysterious motivations. “That’s something hard to accomplish, but if we all do what we’re supposed to do, that will be a really hard decision to make, to figure out who you want to root for. I think that brings out the best in villains.”
Marvel Studios' BLACK PANTHER..Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman)..Ph: Film Frame..©Marvel Studios 2018
Everett Ross (Martin Freeman)
Who Ross is: Introduced in “Civil War” as a high-level government operative who keeps a cool head around both politicians and Avengers, Ross will step up in prominence in “Black Panther.”
“He is the coolest man in the room,” says Freeman with a hint of pride, noting that the character will be as far away from the initially in-over-his-head Ross of the comics. “We're going as realistic as you can be in a heightened universe. It would be slightly incredible for him not to be good at his job and not to be competent at this position that he's at. He's good at his job. He's well-traveled. He's well-versed in the ways of the world.”
Ross is also savvy enough to handle what he discovers inside the Panther’s isolated, long-hidden kingdom. “Wakanda is going to be a surprise to him, but in terms of meeting diplomats, kings – that's not particularly fazing to him,” says Freeman. “[And] he meets superheroes. So I think some of his humor comes from exasperation.”
Who Ross very much is not: “We've all seen the idea of the goofy white guy among cool black people going, ‘What the hell?’” explains Freeman. “I've seen that about four billions times today, so I don't really need to do that again…He has moments of comedy, he has moments of levity and there was humor there, but that's not his purpose.”
Marvel Studios' BLACK PANTHER..Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis)..Ph: Film Frame..©Marvel Studios 2018
Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis)
What Klaue’s been up to since “Avengers: Age of Ultron”: Another familiar face in the MCU, Klaue was first seen confidently facing down against both the Avengers and their A.I. adversary, and while it didn’t go well for him Klaue’s still stirring the pot as a global mercenary.
“He’s just basically been causing mayhem in the world, on minor and major levels,” chuckles Serkis. “He’s a smart guy in the sense that he’s a businessman as well as an arms dealer. He manages to cover his tracks. He has a mercenary army that works with him in different locations all around the world and he’s able to go down rabbit holes and appear in other places. He’s got the smarts, but he’s also a little whacked out.”
South African by birth, Klaue has a checkered history with Wakanda. ”He’s got a bit of a love/hate relationship with it, really,” reveals Serkis. “He certainly has discovered things about it that nobody else has, and we discover that in this movie. He’s one of the few people who’s been into Wakanda and he reveals quite a lot about it.”
What about that trippy red-and-pink look and sonic cannon from the comics?: While Klaue may not quite match the unique physical look of the venerable Marvel Comics version, the MCU version will move at least one step closer to the source material: “He obviously had his arm chopped off [in ‘Age of Ultron’], and he has a weapon, which we will discover,” hints Serkis.
Marvel Studios' BLACK PANTHER..Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o)..Ph: Matt Kennedy..©Marvel Studios 2018
Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o)
Who Nakia is to Wakanda: Another fresh face in the Panther’s world is only loosely inspired by the Christopher Priest-era comics character of the same name. “Nakia, when we meet her, is a War Dog, which means she's one of Wakanda’s CIA agents,” explains Nyong’o, alluding to a role akin to the comics’ Hatut Zeraze, the nation’s zealous secret protective force. “Her job is to spy around the world and report back to Wakanda to keep Wakanda safe and keep Wakanda informed.”
As such, she’a a more-than-capable warrior. “Nakia’s fighting style is being informed by judo and ju-jitsu and silat, and stuff like that,” says Nyong’o. “So I’m learning all these cool skills and I get to jump higher than I thought I could jump. I get to roll backwards –which I thought I would never do after the age of 8!”
Where her loyalties lie: The actress says that while she admires her character’s inherent qualities ] “I’ve very attracted to Nakia’s determination – she’s determined. She’s methodical” – those very attributes may be tested if she has to chose between service to her country and service to her king. “We see in this film Nakia has to figure out what comes first for her.”
