A revealing image from the set of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever further fires rumors that Namor the Sub-Mariner will come into sight in the forthcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe continuation.
Initially shared (and later erased) by Atlanta Filming on Twitter, the behind-the-scenes picture displays a filming team in a big pool of water, apparently to film sceneries describing the losing city of Atlantis and Namor the Sub-Mariner, which two are spread to act a noticeable role in Wakanda Forever.
New behind the scenes photo of the filming of Namor/Atlanteans scenes in BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER! 🔱
— Black Panther: Wakanda Forever News (@bpanthernews) February 11, 2022
(via @AtlantaFilming) pic.twitter.com/zavIK5SVmV
Rumors surrounding Namor‘s appearance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever started spreading in June 2021, after new speculation said that Tenoch Huerta (Narcos: Mexico, Specter) had been chosen for this character. The speculation also signified that the movie would comprise of Namor’s colleagues Atlanteans Namora and Attuma. Namor’s recommendation into the MCU was teased in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame at the mention of “underwater earthquakes,” something Endgame writer Christopher Markus would then refer to in 2020.
“Sometimes, you plant seeds. Sometimes, they grow,” he said. Nevertheless, when the assumption early started spreading that these underwater earthquakes could point to Namor, Markus said, “I wish we were that smart.”
Generated by Bill Everette, Namor, or the Sub-Mariner, early appeared in Marvel Comics #1 in 1939 as the Emperor of Atlantis and a mutant. In the comics, his kingdom is regularly fighting with the country of Wakanda, something provoked in a summary released for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The summary underlines the plenty of vibranium in Wakanda, which “the father of man Namor was sent searching for … in Antarctica.” Furthermore, striking is the “interwoven history” between Wakanda and the lost city of Atlantis, since all were civilizations that distanced themselves from the external world as a method to save their separate ways of life.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever started shooting in Atlanta, GA on June 29, 2021, but production has been halted many times after that due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Most recently, the production stopped again after actor Nakia Lupita Nyong’o had a positive test for COVID-19. The movie plays the role of a continuation to 2018’s Black Panther, acting the late Chadwick Boseman as King T’Challa/Black Panther. The storyline of Wakanda Forever was rearranged after the death of Boseman in 2020.
“It’s clearly very emotional without Chad,” Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige stated briefly before Wakanda Forever started producing. “But everyone is also very excited to bring the world of Wakanda back to the public and back to the fans. We’re going to do it in a way that would make Chad proud.”
Directed by Ryan Coogler, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will be out in cinemas on November 11, 2022.
