Marvel’s “Black Panther” may not be a household name yet, but Marvel has big plans for him in the near future. Black Panther has been a part of Marvel’s publications since 1966 as the first black superhero in mainstream American comics. His legacy not only precedes Luke Cage, Black Lightning and John Stewart as Green Lantern; he also precedes the Black Panther Party (BPP) by three months.
According to The New York Times, writing Black Panther’s newest comic will be author and Marvel fan Ta-Nehisi Coates. He’s known for his work with The Atlantic as a national correspondent and award-winning author. His recent book, “Between The World and Me,” is a finalist for the National Book Award. Much of his writing deals with race issues in social and political fields. Coates also happens to be the son of a former BPP member. Growing up, he wrote essays as punishment but still retains a love for comics.
Marvel’s been trying to focus on diversity in recent times by adding characters to their comics such as a female Thor, Pakistani Ms. Marvel and Korean Hulk. Black Panther not only gets a new comic series, he’ll also be played by Chadwick Boseman in the upcoming Captain America movie, “Captain America: Civil War.” After that, a “Black Panther” film is set to release in 2018. Ava DuVernay, the director of “Selma,” was considered to direct it but decided against it due to creative differences in story and perspective.
After a long time in the shadows, the future looks bright for Black Panther.
