‘Black Panther’ is expected to take in at least $250 million worldwide this weekend
LOS ANGELES — Ticket buyers around the world are poised to smash another one of Hollywood’s most entrenched beliefs.
The Black Panther character was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and he first appeared more than 50 years ago in Fantastic Four #52. Over the years, a variety of writers and artists (the comic was relaunched in 2016 by Ta Nehisi-Coates and Brian Stelfreeze) have built up a rich mythology around Wakanda, the country that Black Panther defends and rules as king.
The euphorically reviewed Disney-Marvel superhero movie “Black Panther,” with an almost entirely black cast and a powerful Afrocentric story line, is expected to take in at least $250 million worldwide between Friday and Monday.
Despite his goofy name, Killmonger is the best part of the movie, forcing T’Challa and the rest of Wakanda’s ruling class to confront their past, as well as the larger weight of history. Jordan has done impressive work for director Ryan Coogler before, most recently as the title character in Creed, and he’s terrific here, switching from charm to vulnerability to incandescent rage.
The rest of the cast is strong across the board. The standouts include Letitia Wright as T’Challa’s younger sister, the tech-savvy Shuri; Winston Duke as Mbaku, leader of a rival tribe; and Get Out‘s Daniel Kaluuya as W’Kabi — a character whose story may have been truncated in the script, but who seems fully formed in Kaluuya’s performance.
The Black Panther character was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and he first appeared more than 50 years ago in Fantastic Four #52. Over the years, a variety of writers and artists (the comic was relaunched in 2016 by Ta Nehisi-Coates and Brian Stelfreeze) have built up a rich mythology around Wakanda, the country that Black Panther defends and rules as king.
The euphorically reviewed Disney-Marvel superhero movie “Black Panther,” with an almost entirely black cast and a powerful Afrocentric story line, is expected to take in at least $250 million worldwide between Friday and Monday.
Despite his goofy name, Killmonger is the best part of the movie, forcing T’Challa and the rest of Wakanda’s ruling class to confront their past, as well as the larger weight of history. Jordan has done impressive work for director Ryan Coogler before, most recently as the title character in Creed, and he’s terrific here, switching from charm to vulnerability to incandescent rage.
The rest of the cast is strong across the board. The standouts include Letitia Wright as T’Challa’s younger sister, the tech-savvy Shuri; Winston Duke as Mbaku, leader of a rival tribe; and Get Out‘s Daniel Kaluuya as W’Kabi — a character whose story may have been truncated in the script, but who seems fully formed in Kaluuya’s performance.
And it’s worth mentioning that if you are a Marvel aficionado, you may have noticed that when their films borrow from different genres, whether that’s political thriller (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), space opera (the Guardians of the Galaxy films) or heist (Ant-Man), they usually end up in the same place, namely a finale filled with CGI explosions and punching that will decide the fate of the world and/or universe.
