It’s three days until Black Panther hits theaters and fans will be getting a unique experience thanks to a bigger budget than any recent MCU film. Marvel and Disney’s recent forays into creating more diverse properties have seen even bigger interest in the studio’s films. While there have been some controversies, studio head Kevin Feige seems committed to making the chances audiences have asked to see.
The world of Wakanda is ripe for rich storytelling and while Marvel didn’t initially have the rights, they’re clearly focused on making up for lost time. The idea for a Black Panther film has been percolating in Hollywood since the 90s with Wesley Snipes, but the wait is finally over for deserving audiences around the world. With the advances in technology and the backing of Disney, Marvel poured focus into the film with Feige willing to spend whatever it took to bring Ryan Coogler’s Wakandan vision to life.
MORE: WHY IT TOOK SO LONG TO GET A BLACK PANTHER MOVIE
That’s according to Vulture, who talked to Feige about just what it took to bring Black Panther to the screen in the splendor it deserved. Marvel’s focus has been on assembling an incredible team both in front of and behind the camera. From the costumes to the Wakandan technology it was a no-brainer to Feige that the film needed to have a budget worthy of the fictional African nation. He revealed that the studio had spent more than they did on their last couple of movies.
That looks to pay off at the box office. Black Panther is the most tweeted about movie of 2018. The film has seen higher IMAX presales than any other Marvel film to date and outsold all of Fandango’s previous first quarter films. The studio is using it as an opportunity to showcase new technology for theatergoers including being shown in 270-degree ScreenX format. Feige took time to also praise Disney:
I hope you can tell from watching the movie, but the resources devoted to this movie are equal to and in fact surpass our last couple of movies. It’s a big story that deserves to be told in a big way, for all of the cultural and political reasons that people talk about, but also because it’s such a key corner of our Marvel universe, and has been for decades and decades."
These investments are poised to pay off at the box office. From Black Panther’s numerous box office records to the potential for future franchises for its characters that will have a built-in audience, Black Panther is poised to make Marvel quite a bit of money. It won’t be enough for them to build their own Wakanda, but by investing in the film they’re inspiring a number of people who could create a much bigger world, or at least a much more entertaining one. That’s money well spent.
We wanted to do it justice, and we have a studio with Disney, and leaders with Alan Horn and Bob Iger, who supported us a hundred percent.”
Source: Vulture
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