Black Panther: Morris Chestnut Would Love To Play T’Challa!

Actor Morris Chestnut has interest in playing the legendary Black Panther. Check out the article below, and share what you think how he would work portraying the character after the JUMP!

(Source: mtv.com)

by Brett White

Morris Chestnut makes his comic book movie debut today in “Kick-Ass 2,” where he plays Hit-Girl’s guardian Marcus Williams—you can see the two of them mix it up in this clip. But “Kick-Ass 2” isn’t the only comic book film Chestnut has on his mind, according to a new interview with iamROGUE. The actor still has Marvel Comics’ Black Panther on his mind.

“Obviously I would love to play that part, but Marvel and that studio—they’re a mega-machine, and they have the people in mind that they want to do,” said Chestnut. “Maybe If I had gotten to kick ass in ‘Kick-Ass’ they would consider me, but you never know what’s going to happen. Stranger things have happened in this industry.”

Chestnut got on Splash Page’s radar back in early April when the actor tweeted that it was “time to get familiar with the Black Panther character.” Chestnut had to later clarify that his tweet was not a hint about any casting rumors, and that he knew as much as the fans did about Marvel’s Black Panther plans.

As we learned earlier today with Simon Pegg and Ant-Man, and earlier this week with Vin Diesel and Groot, actors cannot make their interactions with superhero characters known online without causing a storm of speculation.

Chestnut would be a great choice for Black Panther, but if history repeats itself, he may find himself playing another Marvel character. Djimon Hounsou expressed interest in playing T’Challa before eventually being cast in “Guardians of the Galaxy” as possible antagonist Korath. Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje was in talks to play the character way back in 2009, but now plays the dark elf Kurse in “Thor: The Dark World.” And Anthony Mackie, who plays the superhero Falcon in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” even expressed interest in playing the king of Wakanda. It seems like all you have to do to get a role that isn’t Black Panther is to express interest in playing Black Panther.

A Black Panther film has been in the works for years, with the most recent updates about the film’s progress coming from Stan Lee himself.

“Back at Marvel, they are frantically looking for what is the next one they’re going to do,” he said. “There is no way they won’t eventually do a Silver Surfer movie. It may not be for a few years because they’re thinking and working on Doctor Strange, Black Panther, Ant-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy.” Now, we doubt that Lee is really tapped into the day-to-day affairs of Marvel Studios, but the casual mention bodes well—as does a recent Entertainment Weekly article that says a Panther film is a high priority.

There were also rumors and rumblings on the “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” set that Black Panther was a lock for “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” a rumor that’s bolstered by the fact that the sequel will be shooting in South Africa.

If Black Panther does come soon—and he deserves to—maybe Chestnut will finally be the guy to play him.