Among the prominent names on the list when Marvel Studios waved its bat to the crowd in 2005 to announce a flurry of new superhero movies was Black Panther. It would take even longer, but by then the plans to introduce the character to the big screen had already begun.
In 2016, Chadwick Boseman’s appearance as T’Challa in Captain America: Civil War eventually sowed the seeds for a Black Panther solo film. After two years, Wakanda finally materialized as the focal point of a narrative about the people of the nation and its superhuman commander.
From the character’s 1966 debut in a comic book, it was a long voyage. The movie had an enormous worldwide influence. Black Panther received significant Oscar consideration while millions of fans raised their arms in a regal salute. It was also a huge hit at the box office, grossing $1.34 billion globally.
These ten details concern Black Panther.
1. Black Panther Was Almost Made in the Mid-1990s With Wesley Snipes
As Marvel lumbered through the 1980s and 1990s with hit after hit movie (hey, Howard the Duck!), Wesley Snipes turned his attention to T’Challa as a freshly discovered celebrity.
Unfortunately, the perfect screenplay, director, and technology never came together to produce the proper film, so Snipes went on to helm Blade, the television series that, ironically, helped Marvel stay viable long enough to produce Black Panther two decades later.
2. Ryan Coogler Would Only Sign on if He Could Bring His Own Crew
Marvel has a reputation for tightly controlling its iconic formula under Kevin Feige, feeding big names into a machine that produces films with a hint of uniqueness but a lot of repetition.
Director Ryan Coogler was unwilling to have his vision compromised, and he only consented to helm the movie because Marvel allowed him to assemble his production team, which included composer Ludwig Goransson, production designer Hannah Beachler, and cinematographer Rachel Morrison.
Coogler had previously collaborated with these individuals on the critically acclaimed Sundance films Fruitvale Station (2013) and the Rocky spin-off Creed (2015).
3. Coogler Drew Inspiration From a Cannes Winning Indie French Film
If you were creating an action superhero movie, where else would you look? In 2018, Coogler spoke with Fandango:
“My favorite film is a film called A Prophet, a French film that was released almost a decade ago now, which seems a bit crazy, Any time I’m making a movie, I’m always leaning on inspiration from that one. A Prophet deals with secret societies and cultural ties, so that was a big influence [on Black Panther].”
In 2009, Jacques Audiard’s film A Prophet took home the Grand Prix at Cannes. Similar to Black Panther, it aimed to provide further on-screen representation to marginalized groups, in this case, French-speaking Arabs.
4. The Black Panther Team Turned a Horse Into a Rhinoceros
If you have to construct a rhino, begin with a horse. When Black Panther finally hit the big screen, the production team employed some amazing techniques to bring the realm of Wakanda to life, despite Snipes’s regrets about the lack of CGI tech capabilities in the mid-1990s.
This involves filming horses and then dressing them up as digital rhinos to make them charge over the plains or nibble on an apple off Boseman’s hand.
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5. Its South Korea Chase Involved 150 Cars and 700 People
This pursuit scene falls precisely in the middle of the two films’ vehicular body counts—2 Fast 2 Furious (2003) wrecked 130 automobiles, while Fast & Furious (2001) wrecked 190—if you’re keeping score. The most significant figure in Black Panther, however, may be the 3000 prosthetic nodes Michael B. Jordan had to do in order to complete Killmonger’s scarification.
6. Shaved Heads Became a Bonding Experience Among the Black Panther Actors
All of the Dora Milaje members had to consent to shave their heads, but it was a chance to forge a stronger bond as a group. On Jimmy Kimmel, Danai Gurira said:
“There’s a big difference between short cut and dolphin-smooth bald, Day by day all the wonderful women in my army started to come in. They all had long hair one day, and they were like me the next, and we just started to have some solidarity around it.”
7. Coogler Went to the Movies to See Iron Man on Its Opening Day When He Was Still in Film School
Following Iron Man’s press conference, T’Challa addresses the UN to declare Wakanda would share its technology with the rest of the world in the post-credits scene of Black Panther. It was intentional, serving as a bridge between the movies and a reference to the original MCU picture, which Coogler saw on the opening day of the USC School of Cinematic Arts when he was still a student there. Coogler stated to io9.
“What I thought was great about Iron Man, which [Marvel does] a great job of in their movies, is that it feels like it’s happening in our world even though it’s not,”
8. Lupita Nyong’o Paid for 600 Children in Kenya to See the Film
A few weeks before the film opened in theaters, Frederick Joseph started the Black Panther Challenge, which raised $50,000 to provide free movie tickets for children in Harlem. Nyong’o returned the favor by bringing 600 kids from her birthplace of Kisumu, Kenya, to see her on-screen antics with Boseman. Then, she shared on Instagram:
“I wanted kids from my hometown to see the positive images reflected in the film and superheroes that they can relate to on the big screen. No matter where you live, you can help make this happen for more children who can’t afford to see the movie.”
9. The Wakanda Salute Exists Because of Pharaohs and American Sign Language
Saying, “Wakanda Forever,” with crossed arms, has earned a life beyond the movie. The imaginary salutation, which also happens to indicate “hug” in American Sign Language, was inspired by some statues from West Africa and the manner in which pharaohs are buried, according to Coogler.
10. Donald Glover Wrote Jokes for Black Panther
During the DVD commentary, Coogler refers to Glover as “one of the funniest people” he has ever met and discloses that the Community actor contributed a few jokes to the movie. The most noteworthy occurs when Shuri (Letitia Wright), one of the gathered tribes, raises her hand to protest that everything is taking too long and asks if someone will challenge T’Challa for the queenship.
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