Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther,” is a global cultural phenomenon!
If you havent seen it, wow you’re missing out on pop culture history. Pick it up on Digital, Movies Anywhere, Blu-ray & 4K [amazon]
Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther,” the highly celebrated story of T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), a young African prince who takes on the mantle of King and Super Hero, has thrilled and inspired generations of moviegoers around the globe. Now, fans can bring home the phenomenon, packed with light-hearted fun, pulse-pounding action and a powerful message, and watch it over and over again.
10 THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW ABOUT MARVEL STUDIOS’ BLACK PANTHER
To celebrate the in-home release of Marvel Studios’ Black Panther, we’ve uncovered 10 stellar secrets from the making of the epic super hero saga. The mighty new Marvel movie is released Digitally in HD, 4K Ultra HD™ and Movies Anywhere on May 8 and on 4K Ultra HD™, Blu-ray™, DVD and On-Demand on May 15. Wakanda forever!
SUPER HERO SECRET #1
THE COMIC BOOKS WERE A HUGE INSPIRATION FOR THE FILMMAKERS
When it comes to the inspiration behind the story of Marvel Studios’ Black Panther, director and co-writer Ryan Coogler admits that he delved deep into the history of the acclaimed Marvel comic book series. “We pulled from all of the comics,” Coogler explains. “When you watch our film, you will probably see something from every writer that has touched T’Challa’s character in the BlackPanther comics. Everything from Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s initial runs through to Don McGregor, Christopher Priest, Jonathan Hickman and Brian Stelfreeze. We grabbed from it all. Each writer left their own mark, so Agent Ross [played by Martin Freeman in the movie] came from Christopher Priest’s run and the character of Shuri came from Reginald Hudlin’s run. Each run left something for us to pull from, but we pulled from absolutely all of them.”
SUPERHERO SECRET #2
THE ATTENTION TO DETAIL ON SET WAS MIND-BLOWING FOR THE ACTORS
“It was incredible to walk on to the Wakandan sets,” enthuses Danai Gurira, who plays Okoye in the movie. “Our production designer, Hannah Beachler, was amazing. I remember walking into the Tribal Council room and thinking, ‘This room is stunning.’ The floors were see-through. There were massive, beautiful panther statues. The throne was very African. The entire décor was very African. It was an amazing experience, which was very rich for my character because I stood there and I thought, ‘This is like nothing else on the planet and it’s my character’s job to protect it.’ Hannah pulled from lots of awesome traditional African esthetics. You don’t get to see it in the movie, but she also designed T’Challa’s office, which was another amazing room on set. We shot some scenes in there, which were left out of the movie – but the office was constructed and it looked amazing.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #3
THE PRODUCTION TEAM TOOK A TRIP TO SOUTH AFRICA TO RESEARCH THE MOVIE
“We took a really important trip to South Africa to do a ton of research for Black Panther,” reveals production designer Hannah Beachler. “We went up and down the country, which helped immensely when we started to create the sets. It was incredible to see all the colors, the textiles and the way things were built. In the end, we shot a lot of plates and second unit footage in South Africa. We shot footage in Uganda, which was used to show the farm land and open space of Wakanda. It was beautiful. We also shot at Victoria Falls in Zambia. When the fighters come flying through the falls and get to the challenge pool; that flight through the falls is Victoria Falls. But when you get to the challenge pool, what you see behind them is a bit of Iguazu Falls, which is in South America. We smashed the two together because we wanted a horizon.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #4
SEBASTIAN STAN WAS ONLY ON THE BLACK PANTHER SET FOR ONE DAY
“The tag scene with Bucky [played by Sebastian Stan] at the end of the movie came as a wonderful surprise to me,” explains Letitia Wright, who plays Shuri in Black Panther. “I was so happy when I read about it. Props to Ryan [Coogler] for adding it to the movie. This scene was shot quite late in the production, but I really enjoyed it. It was a beautiful day on set and I thought it was a great way for us to find out where Bucky had been hiding in Wakanda. We shot the scene in a forest area somewhere in Atlanta, but it only took a day. Sebastian was really great to work with. He’s a good chap.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #5
THE IN-HOME RELEASE IS PACKED WITH DELETED SCENES AND OUTTAKES
Marvel fans can delve deeper into the wondrous world of Wakanda with the exclusive bonus features packaged with the in-home release of the movie. Not only are there behind-the-scenes featurettes and never-before-seen outtakes, but there are also a number of deleted scenes. “There are a couple of scenes with Okoye and W’Kabi [played by Daniel Kaluuya] that I would love people to see,” explains Danai Gurira. “There’s a scene between Okoye and W’Kabi, which takes place after Killmonger tells us what he’s going to do with the kingdom. Okoye is very disturbed by her man seeming to positively respond to Killmonger. There’s also a scene where W’Kabi and Okoye go head-to-head. Okoye pushes W’Kabi to a place where all the rage he had towards T’Challa comes out. I hope some of those moments end up in the deleted scenes.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #6
LUPITA NYONG’O HAD TO LEARN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES FOR THE MOVIE
“The African language that we speak in the movie is Xhosa, which is a Bantu language from South Africa,” reveals Lupita Nyong’o, who plays Nakia in Black Panther. “It has the clicks which my native tongue does not have, so I had to learn it for the movie. I worked very closely with a dialect coach to get it right. I also speak Korean in the film, which was a doozy. A week before we shot the scenes in South Korea, they finalized exactly what Nakia was going to say, so all week I kept practicing the lines over and over again. However, I slipped up from time to time. At one point, the Korean extras laughed because they told me I’d said something about a barbecue by mistake – but we got there in the end.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #7
LETITIA WRIGHT DISCOVERED SHE’D WON HER ROLE IN A RATHER UNUSUAL PLACE
“The audition process was really interesting,” admits Letitia Wright. “I sent over two tapes from London and I didn’t think anything would happen – but then I got a call asking me to fly out to Los Angeles for a screen test. That’s where I met Ryan [Coogler] and Chadwick [Boseman, who plays T’Challa]. Thankfully, we had an immediate connection. I went home and I didn’t hear anything for a couple of weeks – but then I was called back for another screen test. This time, I flew to Atlanta and they put braids in my hair – and I knew I just had to have fun with the audition. I remember thinking, ‘Man, if this happens, it will be very special for me.’ A couple of weeks later, I found out they wanted me for the role of Shuri. I was standing at a bus stop in London when the call came through. I went crazy! I was screaming at the bus stop! I was overjoyed to be part of this epic movie.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #8
CAST MEMBERS HAD TO TACKLE A GRUELING SIX-WEEK BOOT CAMP
Before the cameras started to roll on Black Panther, cast members flew out to Atlanta to prepare for the movie’s awe-inspiring action sequences. “The boot camp lasted six weeks,” reveals Danai Gurira. “It was really helpful to get athletically conditioned for the film shoot, although we also got into the specifics of the movements of our characters. We learned fight choreography, as well as different techniques of how our character was going to move on set. It was intense, but I learned a lot. Okoye is the general of the army and the head of the Dora Milaje, so the way she fights is very traditional. Her movement with the war spear comes from very ancient movements of the nation. It was really interesting to learn.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #9
THERE WERE RAP BATTLES BETWEEN THE ACTORS ON SET
An exclusive gag reel has been created for the in-home release, which is packed with comedy bloopers and slapstick slip-ups from the set of the movie. “There were a lot of funny moments during the filming of Black Panther,” recalls Letitia Wright. “Even though the shoot was a lot of hard work and there were some incredibly physical scenes, we always found moments to have fun. We had rap battles in between takes, or we organized dinners and bowling sessions. There was a day where we did a Get Out challenge, because we had [Get Out star] Daniel Kaluuya working with us. Who won the rap battles? To be perfectly honest, I think I was the best. I was up against a lot of people, but their rapping skills were terrible.”
SUPER HERO SECRET #10
LOOK CLOSELY AT THE MOVIE’S KIMOYO BEADS FOR HIDDEN QUALITIES
Hannah Beachler admits she had a ton of fun working on the high-tech gadgets for the movie. “The Kimoyo beads are my favorite,” the production designer admits. “I really pushed the design on them because I knew the beads needed to be something really cool. The Kimoyo beads were originally introduced in the Black Panther comics – but Ryan [Coogler] loved the idea of using them for communicating in the movie. If you look closely at the beads, you’ll see there’s a prime bead, which is given to you when you’re born in Wakanda. There is a little peak on the prime bead, which makes it stand out from the others. All the beads’ symbols light up, but the prime bead lights up completely. A Nigerian language – nsibidi – is used for the symbols on the beads. You’ll also see nsibidi writing on columns of some of the iconic buildings in Wakanda, too.”
More about the DVD, BluRay
Through the 4K Cinematic Universe Edition of “Black Panther,” fans will experience the exhilarating adventure in stunning 4K Ultra HD with next-generation high dynamic range (HDR) visuals and Dolby Atmos immersive audio. Never-before-seen extras feature commentary from director Ryan Coogler; deleted scenes; outtakes; and several making-of featurettes, which detail the Black Panther’s evolution, the remarkable women of Wakanda, the history of T’Challa’s proud nation, and the cosmic origin and technological applications of vibranium. Also included are a roundtable discussion with “Black Panther”filmmakers and writers; a featurette tracing the countless connections between heroes, characters and storylines within the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The global cultural phenomenon of “Black Panther” has dominated the box office charts emerging as the third biggest movie of all time domestically with over $665 million – the first film in eight years to spend five weeks at No. 1 – and rising to the global top 10 of all time with over $1.3 billion. In the acclaimed film, T’Challa returns home to the hidden high-tech African nation of Wakanda to succeed to the throne and take his rightful place as king, following the death of his father. But when a man named Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) appears, T’Challa’s mettle as king—and Black Panther—is tested when he’s drawn into a formidable conflict that puts the fate of Wakanda and the entire world at risk. Pitted against his own family, the king must rally his allies and release the full power of Black Panther to defeat his foes and embrace his future as an Avenger.
The film features a fierce group of Wakandan women, including Nakia (Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o), a War Dog and Wakandan spy; Shuri (Letitia Wright), T’Challa’s little sister and tech wizard; and the Dora Milaje, the all-female Wakandan Special Forces led by Okoye (Danai Gurira). They team up with reluctant ally CIA agent Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman) to help T’Challa defend Wakanda against the forces threatening to destroy it. The extraordinary ensemble cast of “Black Panther” also includes veteran actors such as Academy Award nominee Angela Bassett as Ramonda, T’Challa and Shuri’s mother; Academy Award® winner Forest Whitaker as Zuri, the spiritual leader of Wakanda; and Andy Serkis as Ulysses Klaue, an illegal arms dealer; and standout performances by Academy Award nominee Daniel Kaluuya as W’Kabi, Royal Counsel to T’Challa; Winston Duke as M’Baku, the formidable leader of the Jabari tribe; and Emmy Award-winner Sterling K. Brown as N’Jobu, a Wakandan War Dog.
The action in “Black Panther” is intensified through a musical score by GRAMMY-nominated composer Ludwig Göransson and soundtrack curated and produced by GRAMMY Award-winning global superstar Kendrick Lamar and Billboard Magazine’s Executive of the Year Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith. “Black Panther: The Album” topped the Billboard 200 chart for five consecutive weeks and the end-credit track, “All The Stars,” featuring Lamar and SZA, spent nine weeks in the top 10 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart.
BONUS MATERIAL (may vary by retailer):
Blu-ray:
- Director’s Intro
- From Page to Screen: A Roundtable Discussion – Delve into the film’s making
- Crowning of a New King – Explore the world of “Black Panther” in all its color and complexity
- The Warriors Within – Get to know Wakanda’s women and the actors who portray them
- The Hidden Kingdom Revealed – Wakanda’s diverse people
- Wakanda Revealed: Exploring the Technology
- Deleted Scenes
- U.N. Meet and Greet
- Okoye And W’Kabi Discuss the Future of Wakanda
- T’Challa Remembers His Father
- Voices from the Past
- Gag Reel
- Exclusive Sneak Peek at “Ant-Man and The Wasp”
- Marvel Studios the First Ten Years: Connecting the Universe
- Director’s Commentary
Digital Exclusives:
- In World Wakanda Tourism Ads
- Come to Wakanda “Before”
- Come to Wakanda “After”
“BLACK PANTHER” CAST & CREW:
“Black Panther” stars Chadwick Boseman (“Captain America: Civil War,” “Get on Up”), Michael B. Jordan (“Creed,” “Fruitvale Station”), Academy Award® winner Lupita Nyong’o (“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” “12 Years a Slave”), Danai Gurira (“The Walking Dead,” “All Eyez on Me”), Martin Freeman (“The Hobbit” trilogy, “Sherlock”), Daniel Kaluuya (“Get Out,” “Sicario”), Letitia Wright (“Urban Hymn,” “Glasgow Girls”), Winston Duke (“Person of Interest, “Modern Family”), with Academy Award® nominee Angela Bassett (“American Horror Story,” “London Has Fallen”), with Academy Award® winner Forest Whitaker (“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” Lee Daniels’ “The Butler”) and Andy Serkis (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”).
Ryan Coogler (“Creed,” “Fruitvale Station”) directs from a screenplay he wrote with Joe Robert Cole (“The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”). Kevin Feige is producer with Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Nate Moore, Jeffrey Chernov and Stan Lee serving as executive producers.
The “Black Panther” creative brain trust includes frequent Coogler collaborators: Oscar®-nominated director of photography Rachel Morrison, ASC (“Dope,” “Fruitvale Station”), production designer Hannah Beachler (“Creed,” “Fruitvale Station”), editor Michael P. Shawver (“Creed,” “Fruitvale Station”) and composer Ludwig Göransson (“Creed,” “Fruitvale Station”); along with editor Debbie Berman (“Spider-Man: Homecoming,” “Timeless”), costume designer Ruth E. Carter (“Selma,” Lee Daniels’ “The Butler”), Academy Award®–winning makeup designer Joel Harlow (“Star Trek Beyond,” “Black Mass”), visual effects supervisor Geoffrey Baumann (“Doctor Strange,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron”) and eight-time Academy Award® nominee/special effects supervisor Dan Sudick (“Captain America: Civil War,” “Marvel’s The Avengers”).