Bam Smack Pow
Fansided

Black Panther: Lupita Nyong’o and Letitia Wright talk on their roles and diversity

By Erik Swann

facebooktwitterreddit

Two stars of Marvel’s Black Panther discuss their experience with the film and the impact it can have.

One of the most exciting aspects of Marvel Studios’ Black Panther is that it will put women of color in prominent roles. With this in mind, Marvel and director Ryan Coogler recruited top performers like Danai Gurira and Angela Bassett. The movie could help to increase diversity in film, and two cast members are well aware of this.

Both Lupita Nyong’o and Letitia Wright both spoke with Teen Vogue about their roles. Wright savored the opportunity to play a multifaceted character like Shuri:

"“Playing [Shuri] was so refreshing. She’s strong, and she can kick butt. She’s intelligent, she loves Wakanda, and she loves creating technology to protect her people. But you see when she’s scared, when she’s frightened, when she’s afraid for her family. Even with some of the male characters [in the movie], you see moments when they are weak. Shuri was the sort of character I went home and studied to find out the reason she does things.”"

Nyong’o was impressed with Coogler’s approach to developing the female characters, which seems to steer clear of clichés:

"“Ryan made a point of avoiding the expected female-rival narrative. In this genre, where spandex is involved, oftentimes the women are pitted against each other. In our story, there are so many different women holding their own space. Women may be in competition with each other, sure, but that doesn’t necessarily mean there’s an absence of love or respect…Making this film awakened me. I walked away from this experience feeling extremely supported, and I felt challenged.”"

Aside from being pleased with their characters, the two actresses have also considered how their participation in the film could create change. The idea of increasing representation in Hollywood is something that really excites Wright:

"“I’m excited for what Black Panther is about to do, not just for young black boys and girls, but for everyone. There’s a black superhero, but then we’re going to have more Asian superheroes and more from India. The solution to the problem being: We don’t have enough of this, so we’re going to make more. I’m excited!”"

Nyong’o shares these sentiments, as she was partly drawn to the project because of the lack of representation that she’s seen. She also hopes the superhero flick will unite audiences during a time when people are divided:

More from Movies

"“In Kenya, I grew up watching Mexican soaps, Australian soaps, and American stuff. I didn’t feel like TV was so diverse — but I just took it in stride. What’s really exciting about this is if I can project my humanity onto people who don’t look like me, from cultures that aren’t like mine, why on earth shouldn’t it be the same in reverse?…The beauty of cinema is you all go into a room together and agree to suspend your disbelief and share this experience of another world. For that moment, you are all one in that space, experiencing the same thing. It reinforces our sense of community.”"

It’s hard to deny just what Black Panther has the potential to do for representation and diversity in the media. Some may be wondering why race is being mentioned so heavily when discussing the film. Well, the fact of the matter is that something like this just doesn’t happen often.

Next: Marvel's Black Panther graces the cover of Empire

It’s not every day you see a blockbuster film from a mainstream studio that features an African-American lead and a predominantly African-American cast. This is a rare occurrence in Hollywood, and one that could send ripples through the film industry.

Black Panther arrives in theaters on February 16, 2018.

Home/Movies