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‘Black Panther’ is set to feature Academy Award-winning actor Forest Whitaker as he makes a jump from the ‘Star Wars’ franchise to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Whitaker is set to join Chadwick Boseman and Lupita Nygon’o in the all-star cast.
According to Cinema Blend, Whitaker has recently been confirmed as one of the principal cast members in the upcoming standalone film for Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa a.k.a. Black Panther directed by Ryan Coogler. The 55-year old Academy Award-winner is set to play Zuri, a wise elder stateman in Wakanda.
Whitaker is set to star in Lucasfilm and Disney’s first standalone ‘Star Wars’ anthology film entitled ‘Rouge One: A Star Wars’ story. His character Saw Gererra is a human male resistance fighter, who fought against the Confederacy of Independent Systems on Onderon during the Clone Wars. Saw soon became a key player in the formation of the Alliance to Restore the Republic and in the fight against the Galactic Empire.
According to Hit Fix, it is not uncommon for actors to appear in multiple franchises – specifically between Lucasfilm, Disney, and Marvel. Actors such as Lupita Nyong’o played Maz Katana in ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ and also went on to voice the wolf Raksha in Disney’s 2016 ‘The Jungle Book’ film. Scarlett Johansson of ‘Avengers’ fame also lent her voice to the python Kaa in the same film.
In the original comic books, Whitaker’s Zuri is a loyal adviser to T’Challa’s father T’Chaka and has remained a faithful ally even after T’Challa took over the throne. Besides being a stateman, he was also a highly skilled warrior and tracker. However, he met his demise while protecting T’Challa’s sister Suri, who was attempting to become the next Black Panther.
Whitaker joins other new cast additions namely Daniel Kaluuya, Winston Duke, and Florence Kasumba. Other members of the all-star cast include Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger, Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Danai Gurira as Okoye, and Andy Serkis as Ulysses Klaue.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the upcoming ‘Black Panther’ film will not be the first time Whitaker worked with Coogler. Whitaker produced Coogler’s first feature-length film ‘Fruitvale Station’, which received critical acclaim upon its release in 2013.
‘Black Panther’ is an upcoming action-drama and science-fiction film scheduled to premiere in theaters on February 16, 2018. It is co-written and directed by Ryan Coogler and produced by Kevin Feige. It is intended as part of the MCU’s Phase 3 to be released right after ‘Thor: Ragnarok’.
