The Oscar-winning actress is in negotiations to join Chadwick Boseman in the upcoming 'Black Panther' solo movie.
- May 13, 2016
AceShowbiz - Lupita Nyong'o is in talks to star opposite Chadwick Boseman in "Black Panther", according to The Hollywood Reporter. While the identity of Lupita's character has not been revealed yet, sources say she will play Black Panther/T'Challa's love interest.
Traditionally, Black Panther hasn't been shown as a character with a lot of time for romance and one character romantically related to him is essentially off-limits to Marvel Studios. However, there are five possible characters to be played by Lupita, including Monica Lynne, Malaika, Storm, Queen Divine Justice and Shuri.
Monica Lynne is a longtime love interest of Black Panther, whom he rescued from the racist organization The Sons of the Serpent in 1970's "Avengers No. 73". Monica was engaged to T'Challa during the 1991 series "Black Panther: Panther's Prey", before they split.
Malaika is the Wakandan trade ambassador to Paris as well as a member of the Order of the Panther who appeared in the 1988 "Black Panther" Vol. 2 series. However, she never appeared again outside the series.
"X-Men" member Storm was also romantically linked to Black Panther. In 2006, Marvel announced with much fanfare that Black Panther would be marrying Storm. The pair were married in "Black Panther" Vol. 4 No. 18, with Storm becoming the queen of Wakanda in the process. However, T'Challa later annulled the marriage as the couple became enemies in the 2012 "Avengers vs. X-Men" comic book series.
Arguably, Storm is the character which Marvel can't bring to the big screen. Alexandra Shipp replaces Halle Berry in "X-Men: Apocalypse", and it's unlikely that the studio would be able to use her in a "Black Panther" movie even if they wanted to.
Queen Divine of Justice and Shuri may not have become the love interests of Black Panther, but they were closely related to him. Queen Divine of Justice is the daughter of the chieftain to a tribe outlawed by T'Challa, who serves as one of the Dora Milaje, the bodyguards to the king of Wakanda, and drawn into conflicts with the Black Panther's enemies.
Shuri, meanwhile, is T'Challa's half-sister who replaced him as the ruler of Wakanda, following his collapse into a (thankfully temporary) comatose state. She fought off Doctor Doom, Thanos and declared war on Atlantis, before sacrificing herself to save her country ahead of the massive "Secret Wars" comic book storyline.
Directed by Ryan Coogler, "Black Panther" production set to start in early 2017 for a February 2, 2018 release.
