An inspiration to all: Black Panther’s Chadwick Boseman
Chadwick Boseman left a huge impact with his performance in the Black Panther movie in 2018 and the lack of his presence in Black Panther II will definitely be felt.
The idea of making the Black Panther movie did not just come out of the blue. Years of thought went into developing the Marvel character, and when the movie earned three Oscars in 2018, it proved that it was the right time.
The extraordinary Stan Lee, the man who created many of our favorite movies and Marvel heroes, along with writer and artist Jack Kirby, had the idea to create a revolutionary character in 1996. Black Panther made his comic debut in July 1996 alongside The Fantastic Four in Fantastic Four no.52.
According to Britannica.com, Black Panther was created to fill a void. Up until the last years of the 20th Century, there were no African-American superheroes. Even though it took nearly a century to come up with a suitable African superhero, Black Panther was designed with powers that make him the equal of others, and make his enemies stop in their tracks. Those powers, according to Goliath.com, include:
- Invisibility
- Clairvoyance
- Cosmic awareness
- Resistance to telepathy
- Master tactician
- Black Panther knowledge
- Healing factor
- Super durability
- Super speed
- Heightened Senses
- Necromancy
- Genius Inventor
The Black Panther movie was the 18 th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, grossing over $748 million at the box office after only two weeks (www.popsugar.com), and featured not only an African-American cast but also an African-American director, Ryan Coogler.
It is estimated that African-Americans made up about 40% of Black Panther´s opening weekend sales. African-Americans made their voice and talent heard with the release of Black Panther in 2018. According to www.vox.com, Black Panther gained so much attention because it offered proof to studio executives, and anybody that wanted to call the shots in Hollywood.
The main message of the movie was about challenging power structures. In the story, T´Challa, the leader of Wakanda, had to deal with people wanting him out of power, beginning with M´Baku and eventually ending up with Killmonger.
There is no doubt that, as well as the acting and performance of Chadwick Boseman, Black Panther also showed how African-Americans could make their voices heard in a strong and impactful way.
The Black Panther saga is scheduled to continue, with filming starting in 2021 and an expected release date for Black Panther II as July 8, 2022. (www.digitalspy.com).
