Things changed when the MCU
began, with Black Panther on the list of 10 films Paramount was to distribute.
It ultimately ended up on the shelf until the casting of Chadwick Boseman as the
titular character was announced in 2014. The film was passed by various
directors, until it landed with Ryan Coogler, who had recently written and
directed Creed.
Coogler also co-wrote the
script with Joe Robert Cole, who had previously pitched stories for a War
Machine and Inhumans which weren’t picked up for various reasons. He’d recently
written and produced The People vs O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story
Made on a $200m budget, the
movie surpassed all expectations delivering a $1.35bn box office, over $700m
from the US. It’s also one of the best rated Marvel movies with a 97% rating
with an average score of 8.26/10, though audiences were slightly harsher with a
79% although with a similar average score of 4.1/5
Black Panther won many
accolades, being nominated for 7 academy awards, including best picture, and
ended up winning for its original soundtrack, costumes and production design.
It probably would’ve been a better win than Green Book.
