Black Panther: Here's Why Marvel Was Terrified To Make This Movie

In 2018, Marvel Studios unveiled Black Panther to its viewers. A superhero film that focuses on T’Challa and his people. An event film, Black Panther became an unprecedented global success. However, initially, the bigwigs at Marvel Studios were a little hesitant about releasing the film.

Black Panther: An Event Movie

In 2018, Marvel Studios released Black Panther. The first installment of a new saga, the feature film focuses on T’Challa, the king of Wakanda and incidentally the vigilante Black Panther. Introduced two years earlier in Captain America: Civil War, Black Panther is an iconic comic book character. Created in 1966 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, Black Panther is the very first black superhero in mainstream comics. He therefore has a unique and unprecedented cultural and social status. However, Black Panther had never before been brought to the screen.

Of course, the announcement of a Black Panther film is an event in itself. A cult character, a social and political icon, a charismatic superhero, all the ingredients are there to make a great film.

Directed by Ryan Coogler, led by Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o and Forest Whitaker, it is a film by African-Americans for African-Americans. A first in the audiovisual landscape of superhero films.

Unsurprisingly, Black Panther is a triumph. The feature film is nominated for 7 Oscars and leaves with three statuettes including Best Music for Ludwig Göransson. On the box office side, Black Panther has brought in more than $1.3 billion in box office revenue. Faced with this thunderous success, Marvel Studios has even capitalized on a sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, released in 2022. Here again the film was a financial victory with more than $859 million in box office revenue.

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Marvel was cautious

During a recent appearance on the Marc Maron WTF podcast, actress Lupita Nyong’o looked back on the genesis of Black Panther. The actress who plays Nakiain the MCU spoke about Marvel Studios' fear of such a project. She highlighted how anxious the producers were about such a film:

There was a lot of fear, of course, because the studio was taking a risk by making this superhero movie with all black people. We really felt it. Even for us. We were like, “We have to succeed. We can't fail.” Because too often, we hear the lie that black culture doesn't sell. That a black experience is not a universal experience. And we had to prove that wrong. There was a sense of ownership and purpose on set.

While one can point out the technical and artistic flaws of Black Panther, it is important to emphasize the social and political importance of this blockbuster. Black Panther proved to investors that a mainstream film entirely driven by an African-American culture sells, and can explode the box office. Helped by the Marvel brand, Black Panther ultimately had little chance of being a failure. With a budget of $200 million, Ryan Coogler's blockbuster was largely profitable.

Concerning the sequel, it's hard to know in which direction the Black Panther saga will go. For the moment, no third film has been made official. However, Marvel Studios is currently working on an animated series for Disney+ called Eyes of Wakanda. As for Lupita Nyong’o, she is still starring in A Quiet Place: Day 1. She will also soon be seen in the animated film The Wild Robot, which will be released in theaters on October 9.