Shortly after The Avengers hit theatres and made serious box office bank, head of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige announced that apart from additions to Avenger mainstays Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor, two OTHER movies would also be doing into development. We've already discussed Ant Man, but now the rumor mill is churning out the idea that another Avenger is getting their own movie.
Like Marvel has done before, they did plant a few clues as to comic's first black super hero getting his own movie. Panther's home nation of Wakanda is circled on a map at the closing of Iron Man 2. I guess all my nerd-tention was focused on that briefing labeled "Avenger Initiative." While it's hard to see, people with greater knowledge of Marvel geography than yours truly confirm that one of the highlighted regions is indeed Black Panther's home turf. But just to clarify, let's take a quick geography lesson.
Marvel.com lists Wakanda's location in Equatorial Africa, and "is located directly in the middle of the the African nations of Narobia (fictional), Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia." If you don't have an atlas handy, that would put it roughly at the green square. Compare it to the map from the closing scene of Iron Man 2, and it seems rather spot on with the description.
Wakanda also happens to be home of the same metal used to make Captain America's shield.
Can Black Panther measure up to the standards set by a super solider, billionaire with powered armor, a Norse God, and raditated scientist with serious rage issues? I would think so. According to Marvel, among his powers and abilities, Black Panther is, "a brilliant tactician, strategist, scientist, tracker and a master of all forms of unarmed combat whose unique hybrid fighting style incorporates acrobatics and aspects of animal mimicry. Being a royal descendent of a warrior race, he is also a master of armed combat, able to use a variety of weapons but prefers unarmed combat. He is a master planner who always thinks several steps ahead and will go to extreme measures to achieve his goals and protect the kingdom of Wakanda."
And Black Panther isn't just a hero, he's also the king of Wakanda, which gives him "access to a vast collection of magical artifacts, advanced Wakandan technological and military hardware, as well as the support of his nation's wide array of scientists, warriors, and mystics. The Wakandan military has been described as one of the most powerful on Earth. His attire is the sacred vibranium costume of the Wakandan Panther Cult. He is a skilled hunter, tracker, strategist, politician, inventor, and scientist. He has a Ph.D in physics from Oxford. Considered one of the eight smartest people on the planet, he is a genius in physics and advanced technology, and is a brilliant inventor."
Take THAT Stark...
The news of this possible addition to Marvel's ever more popular film franchise comes from Latino Review, the same folks who gave us the news about Iron Man 3. The project has apparently been in development for a number of years. Usually a writer for documentaries, Mark Bailey was hired last year to write the script. No word yet as to who will play the Panther, or when we can expect to see him on the big screen.
