Marvel has no shortage of characters they can spinoff from their wildly successful Avengers franchise, and we've seen them take advantage of it at every turn. Not only is there a Doctor Strange movie expected in the next couple of years, but a Netflix deal has TV series for Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage. That pretty much takes them out of the running to be on the big screen anytime soon, but one character that fans have been clamoring to see part of the team is Black Panther.
Ever since the nation of African nation of Wakanda (where the metal for Cap's shield is found) popped up on a map in an early Iron Man film, then was mentioned again in Captain America: The First Avenger, a Black Panther film has been expected at some point. About a year ago Chadwick Boseman (42) was rumored to be up for the role of king T'challa, and now a new story has surfaced that says he'll actually appear in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
It makes some degree of sense if explained in comic book nerd terms. Wakanda is the only place in the world where one can find vibranium, the most powerful metal in the world. The robotic villain Ultron is usually made of adamantium, which in the comics is the toughest metal, but since that word is sewn up over at 20th Century Fox for their X-men universe (Wolverine's bones are made of adamantium), the next best option for Marvel is vibranium. So if Ultron is going to construct himself a body worthy of facing the Avengers, he's going straight to Wakanda to get the vibranium right from the source.
Now, this rumor has surfaced over at Badass Digest, who incorrectly claim Ultron's "comic book famous" shell is made of vibranium, but apparently it's not famous enough for them to know what it's really made of. It was then reiterated over at Shadow and Act, who proceed to claim Black Panther has a Netflix series coming, which is also not true. So take this for pure speculation at this point, although it would be pretty darn cool if true.
Avengers: Age of Ultron opens May 1st 2015.
