Marvel’s Black Panther is rounding out its cast and it shaping up to be packed with A-list stars.
On Friday, May 13, Michael B. Jordan announced he will team up again with Creed director Ryan Coogler to star in the highly anticipated Marvel Studios film.
Although very little is known about Jordan’s upcoming role, joining the buzz worthy cast marks the third time he will work with Coogler, who is both helming the comic book movie and writing the script with Joe Robert Cole, reports The Hollywood Reporter. The first time the duo worked together was for Fruitvale Station. In the indie drama, Jordan played Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident, who was shot to death by a rookie cop on a subway platform in 2008.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Jordan has tried his hand as a superhero. In 2015, the “Friday Night Lights” alum snagged the role of Johnny Storm/The Human Torch in the Marvel film Fantastic Four. Although his casting was initially attacked by racist Twitter trolls, the blockbuster did fairly well for itself, grossing over $168 million worldwide.
This is a big win for Jordan, who is currently developing a remake of The Thomas Crown Affair. He will also produce the remake along with Joe and Anthony Russo. As previously reported, Academy Award-winner Lupita Nyong’o is currently in talks to play the love interest opposite the film’s star, Chadwick Boseman.
During fall 2014, Boseman (42, Get On Up) was unveiled as the title character in the film following the mid-’60s superhero born T’Challa.
In the Marvel universe, Wakanda is famous for its rich deposits of vibranium, the unbreakable metal used to make Captain America’s shield. Spoiler alert: as expected, T’Challa makes his first appearance in the latest Marvel movie, Captain America: Civil War, with Boseman scoring small moments of clarity, providing us with new perspectives surrounding his character.
For those unfamiliar with Black Panther, he was the first Black super-powered hero to surface in mainstream comics. In July 1966, he made his comic book debut in Fantastic Four No. 52. Though predated by characters like Marvel’s Gabe Jones and Dell Comics’ Lobo, his initial appearance cemented T’Challa’s place as the first superhuman in the medium’s mainstream history.
Black Panther is slated ti hit theaters on Feb. 16, 2018, with production set to start in early 2017. Will you buy a ticket? Sound off in the comments section.
