With Black Panther introducing a slew of new characters to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, one of the titular king’s allies might be poised to a villainous turn in the inevitable sequels.
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Mild spoilers for Black Panther follow!
Though T’Challa and Nakia have a very special relationship which neither is willing to stray too far from, it’s possible the latter character might fulfill her Marvel Comics destiny of becoming the villain named Malice. After all, Nakia actress Lupita Nyong’o is totally on board for the turn.
“Yes!” Nyong’o says of the thought. “Yes, sign me up!”
In Marvel Comics, Nakia becomes obsessed with T’Challa when a spell by Mephisto prompts him to kiss her. Shortly thereafter, she plots to kill the king’s ex-girlfriend and is banished from Wakanda as a result. Befriending Killmonger later down the line, she adopts the name of Malice which had been given to a previous female villain in the Marvel Universe and goes after King T’Challa and his female allies.
It’s entirely possible such a plot could come to a Black Panther sequel. After all, the seeds for narrative prompting Nakia’s turn to villainy may have already been planted. Having formed her relationship with the Wakandan king, the introduction of X-Men character Storm to the mix and her eventual wedding to T’Challa. The often obsessive and protective character in Marvel Comics might just turn on Wakanda if her lover abandons her.
“Are you trying to break up my relationship with Nakia?” T’Challa actor Black Panther said to ComicBook.com after Storm’s introduction was suggested. “It sounds like that’s what you’re doing right now.”
In fact, Boseman and Nyong’o have already talked about such a possibility. “I’m not happy to talk about this, at all! I feel very territorial,” Nyong’o said. “That’s my king! I’ve already told him, he better not have that. He will have a problem on his hands.”
Check out Comicbook.com’s interview with Nyong’o in the video above and see more of the Black Panther cast and crew on the ComicBook.com Originals YouTube channel.
Black Panther is now playing in theaters. Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Avengers: Infinity War on May 4th and Ant-Man and The Wasp on July 6, 2018. Captain Marvel arrives on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2020.
