'Black Panther' trivia and fun facts
Ava DuVernay was related to the film
Ava DuVernay was approached to direct and actually met with Marvel Studio's head Kevin Feige and star Chadwick Boseman, but their visions on the movie didn't come together.
Wakanda was mentioned in 'Iron Man 2'
Wakanda was mentioned as a location on a SHIELD monitor in 'Iron Man 2' (2010). The location pinpoints the country as being situated at Lake Turkana, on the borders of Kenya and Ethopia. The region in real life is special for holding great mineral deposits (properties similar to Wakanda).
Three actors could have been 'Black Panther'
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Anthony Mackie and Djimon Hounsou were considered for the role of T'Challa. All three would go on to play other characters in Marvel films: - Agbaje was Algrim/Kurse in 'Thor: The Dark World' (2013). - Mackie was Sam Wilson in 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' (2014). - Hounsou was Korath in 'Guardians of the Galaxy' (2014).
Before the Black Panthers
Black Panther was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1966. It first appeared in number 52 of 'The Fantastic Four'. Before the Black Panther Party
Wakanda's Origin
The name "Wakanda" comes from the Wakamba tribe of Kenya, also known as the Kamba.
'Captain America: Civil War' Debut
T'Challa, alias Black Panther, first appeared in the Marvel Universe in 'Capitan America: Civil War' where we could see the origins of the character.
Ta-Nehisi Coates's influence
The filmmakers cite Ta-Nehisi Coates's "Black Panther" storyline as an influence on the film.
African martial arts
The fighting in this film is based on African martial arts. The filmmakers also cite the action scenes in 'Creed' (2015) and the Kingsman films as an influence on the style.
Research work
Ryan Coogler brought in consultants who are experts on African history and politics to work on defining Wakanda: "There are many African countries, each with different histories, mythologies, and cultures; there are several tribes who live amongst each other, and together they make the identity of their country. We honed in on some of the history/cultural influences from African countries and then made estimations."
'The Walking Dead' and Marvel
Danai Gurira is the fourth cast member from 'The Walking Dead' to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Michael Rooker portraying Yondu Udonta in 'Guardians of the Galaxy' (2014), Jon Bernthal portraying Frank Castle/The Punisher in 'Daredevil' (2015) and Travis Love as a Jabari warrior in this film.