In a surprising turn of events, Marvel has revealed the very first teaser trailer for the upcoming "Black Panther," which is due out in theaters in February next year. Fans and moviegoers may recall that the character was introduced in last year's "Captain America: Civil War." In the film, Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa, prince of Wakanda, inherited the throne from his father, T'Chaka, who fell victim to a bombing during a UN panel that discussed the Sokovia Accords. T'Challa played a vital role towards the end of the film after fighting under Iron Man's banner, as he wanted to avenge his father's death by bringing Bucky to justice.
Later on in the film, Bucky is granted asylum in Wakanda, where he undergoes cryogenic sleep in the hopes of keeping people safe from his brainwashing. As DC's "Wonder Woman" is set to break records once again this weekend, it seems that Marvel is already answering the hit with "Black Panther."
T'Challa's story is that of a minority
One of the reasons why "Wonder Woman" worked among moviegoers is the fact that the lead is a woman. For the longest time, both Marvel and DC films' main protagonists were men, alienating a large chunk of audiences by portraying women as a second fiddle or supporting characters in their massive franchises. "Wonder Woman" changed all that by putting her in the forefront of a battle and being the savior of the world.
The Hollywood Reporter cites two main similarities between "Black Panther" and DC's first ever female superhero film, writing that "it serves an audience traditionally ignored by the white, male superhero movie genre," and is generally "more colorful" in terms of the cast.
"Black Panther" stars a slew of actors and actresses of color, and Hollywood A-listers at that.
The film is set to feature names such as Lupita Nyong'o, Michael B. Jordan, Danai Gurira, Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker, and Daniel Kaluuya. Among the main cast, only Martin Freeman and Andy Serkis are white.
Marvel opens doors to diversity
Interestingly, the highly anticipated "Black Panther" is also directed by a person of color, in the form of Ryan Coogler, an award-winning director who wrote and directed 2015's "Creed." The film is written by Coogler and Joe Robert Cole, whose credits include "American Crime Story: The People vs OJ Simpson."
It's interesting to see where Marvel takes the superhero franchise after "Avengers: Infinity War" and the fourth untitled "Avengers" film, which is predominantly white.
But like "Wonder Woman," Marvel is finally bringing a female-led superhero film in the form of "Captain Marvel" in 2019 with Brie Larson as the titular character. In the meantime, check out the teaser trailer for "Black Panther" below.
