Prior to all the hype surrounding the Guardians of the Galaxy movie, Marvel's second outing in 2014 was heavily rumored to finally adapt T'Challa, The Black Panther to the big-screen. While that's no longer happening, more discouraging news came when Marvel's co-president suggested that the potential film would be “a little more difficult,” due to the character's homeland being Wakanda, a fictional resource-rich nation in Africa.
Despite all the discouraging news, there have been favorable hints towards the Wakandian king's existence within the Marvel cinematic universe, in previous films. Plus, notorious documentary screenwriter Mark Bailey was hired to pen the film's story in early January last year. Therefore, after The Avengers sequel possibly wraps up “Phase 2” in 2015, that's likely when we'll see The Black Panther grace the silver-screen.
And when the film does eventually get the green-light, another relatively renowned actor to consider for the leading role has emerged. Last year, in the wake of the screenwriter being attached, a Twitter campaign ignited for actor Gbenga Akinnagbe. And when BET.com notified the actor of the random campaign, he responded:
“I used to be [a comic book fan] moreso when I had more time. All I do now is work. Yeah, there's this campaign to get me to be the Black Panther [the Marvel comics superhero]. It's really humbling and I'm honored by it. It's wild that people are really into it. I love comic books, I love action, I'm a pretty active person. I was a wrestler for a great deal of my life. And to play the Black Panther? Get out of here! He comes from Africa. He comes from the most technologically advanced city in the world. It's easy for me to do the math.”
For those who don't know, Gbenga Akinnagbe, 33, is best known for his roles in the Oscar-nominated independent film The Savages, The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, Edge of Darkness, and of course HBO series The Wire. And born in the United States to Nigerian parents, Akinnagbe has set out to show how versatile he is, having comedic roles in Lottery Ticket, and the TV series Nurse Jackie and Showtime's Barbershop.
Considering Marvel has already nabbed Anthony Mackie and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje for different roles, who've also expressed interest in The Black Panther, I do think Gbenga Akinnagbe would fill T'Challa greatly. While we have a long wait before legit news makes rounds for the potential film, what do you think?