Believe it or not, we are only a little over a month away from the premiere of ‘Black Panther,’ which fans have been getting massively excited about ever since the first trailer dropped, and will sure to be even more excited about next week when the new trailer comes out. And as always with Disney/ Marvel, a new film means the marketing team gets started early, including promotional tie-ins and the always important merchandising releases. The news today is that while advertising their new catalog, one retailer released a rather detailed list of character bios from the movie, information which we may have guessed at before, but had not seen written out quite so officially yet.
Here are the character bios which we have thanks to Toys ‘R Us and their online catalog of toys for the movie (by way of Super Hero Hype):
Black Panther (T’Challa, played by Chadwick Boseman) – As the new king of Wakanda, T’Challa is struggling to cope with the loss of his father T’Chaka, but is determined to live up to his great legacy. When Wakanda finds herself beset by two enemies intent on the nation’s downfall, Black Panther must use his new suit and heightened strength, speed and senses to defend Wakanda and the rest of the world.
Okoye (played by Danai Gurira) – The head of the Dora Milaje, an all-female special forces group, Okoya is a fiercely loyal protector of Wakanda who isn’t afraid to question her king, but would defend him with her life. A staunch traditionalist who is as formidable with her spear as she is with her tongue, Okoye finds herself torn between her allegiance to her country and her king when T’Challa begins to challenge ancient Wakandan rules.
Nakia (played by Lupita Nyong’o) – A Wakandan spy pulled from her mission abroad by her former flame T’Challa, Nakia consistently gets involved in conflict for the good of others, adamant to use her abilities to help those in need. In the wake of King T’Chaka’s death and the rise of Wakanda’s new enemies, Nakia puts her skills of subterfuge and hand-to-hand combat to use in order to fight alongside Black Panther.
Shuri (played by Letitia Wright) – Shuri is T’Challa’s younger sister and head of the Wakandan Design Group, where she designs and builds futuristic tech such as the Black Panther suit with Vibranium mined from the Great Mound. She is an innovator, intelligent beyond her years, and always ready to give her big brother a hard time.
Erik Killmonger (Erik Stevens, played by Michael B. Jordan) – Erik Stevens was an American black-ops soldier who earned the nickname “Killmonger” while in the field. However, after disappearing off the grid, he has reemerged with a plan that threatens to put Black Panther and all of Wakanda at risk. Using his charisma, considerable skills in combat and his surprising knowledge of Wakandan customs, Erik Killmonger is a dangerous threat to all that T’Challa holds dear.
M’Baku (played by Winston Duke) – Armed with the hardened Jabari wood armor and a battle staff, M’Baku is the formidable leader of the Jabari tribe, a group of Wakandans who have shunned the use of vibranium and removed themselves from the mainstream Wakandan life. In the wake of T’Chaka’s death, M’Baku is faced with the choice of challenging T’Challa for the throne, or joining forces with his would-be adversary to defend Wakanda from malevolent outside forces.
Everett Ross (played by Martin Freeman) – A CIA agent and former liaison with the Joint Terrorism Task Force, Everett Ross is reunited with T’Challa when they both find themselves after the same adversary: Ulysses Klaue. A skilled tactician with advanced weapons training, Ross becomes an invaluable ally to the Black Panther.
And while on toy news, Hot Toys dropped a teaser on Twitter announcing a new line of Marvel Black Panther figures to go along with the new movie as well, promising some “magnificent collectible figures” from the film. Check out the Tweet below:
It’s gonna be a remarkable year for Marvel! You’re about to see some magnificent collectible figures inspired by @theblackpanther! This is just the beginning. Stay with us for more Marvelious announcements about the ALL-STAR LINEUP from the epic blockbuster after Black Panther! pic.twitter.com/8RGdRBRIpa
— Hot Toys (@hottoysofficial) January 2, 2018
Are you excited to see all the merchandise for ‘Black Panther’ starting to come out, especially as it means the REAL hype and PR campaign for the movie has officially begun? Did you spot any hints or teases at character arcs or plot points in the bios that could give us clues about what might happen in the movie? Feel free to share your finds in the comments below!
