The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that Michael B. Jordan will be joining the cast for Marvel’s Black Panther movie. This marks the third time Jordan has worked with director Ryan Coogler, who previously directed the star in indie drama Fruitvale Station and the Oscar-nominated movie Creed.
Chadwick Boseman will be headlining Black Panther, with Lupita Nyong’o currently in negotiations to star alongside him.
There’s no word yet on who Jordan might be, though a source told THR that “it could be a villain.”
Boseman introduced the world to Black Panther in Captain America: Civil War , which made $179.1 million last weekend and looks to exceed $70 million in its second weekend, a feat achieved by fellow box office stand-outs Jurassic World, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and The Avengers.
The character of Black Panther is an African warrior king named T’Challa, whose fictional nation of Wakanda is rich in the unbreakable vibranium alloy. Boseman’s performance as T’Challa has been noted as one of the film’s highlights .
Jordan starred in last year’s superhero flick The Fantastic 4, a movie whose talented young cast couldn’t save it from failing at the box office. Fingers crossed that Black Panther will prove a better superhero vehicle for Jordan.
Black Panther is set for a Feb. 16, 2018 release date, with production scheduled for an early 2017 start.
