Could Black Panther Appear in the Next ‘Spider-Man’ Movie?

Could Black Panther appear in the untitled Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel?

Marvel Studios, which now serves as creative producers on the Spider-Man franchise, partnered with Sony in 2015 to bring the webhead into the shared Marvel Cinematic Universe.

His first solo movie was set firmly in the MCU: Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Man, was his mentor and benefactor, and he came with longtime supporting players Happy Hogan and Pepper Potts. Captain America made a pair of scene-stealing cameos. The leftover Chitauri wreckage from The Avengers put the Vulture’s villainous plot in motion, and the winged bad guy set his sights on the (former) Avengers Tower.

Black Panther, the latest from Marvel Studios, opened to massive numbers last weekend and has broken several box office records — making its titular character an undeniable A-lister.

The unique Marvel/Sony deal allows Marvel Studios to utilize Spider-Man in their shared universe — letting Spidey take part in movies like Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4 — and Sony gets to keep the entire box office haul of their Spider-Man movies, benefiting from the ties to the wildly popular and massively successful Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Per the deal, Sony wants a Marvel Studios hero to appear in their Spider-Man solos — in Homecoming it was Tony Stark, but Robert Downey Jr. reportedly won’t take part in the sequel — so what are the chances of Chadwick Boseman‘s Black Panther appearing in Spider-Man 2?

European Vacation?

The Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel is expected to start shooting this summer, and is rumored to make another trek back overseas to Berlin, Germany. 

Spidey’s second-most famous lover from the Marvel comics, Gwen Stacy, is rumored to be introduced as a foreign exchange student, and even more rumors claim the Homecoming sequel is also casting for a European “femme fatale.” 

With at least some of Spider-Man 2 taking place in Europe, it’s possible Peter Parker and T’Challa could cross paths: T’Challa is a king from a foreign country, and as seen in Civil War, his political duties brought him to Vienna. 

The ending of Black Panther saw T’Challa announce the formerly isolationist Wakanda would be stepping into the spotlight, going public to lend its resources and support to the world. 

Maybe the newly launched Wakanda global outreach program brings T’Challa away from his kingdom. Or, maybe, Spider-Man and Black Panther end up going after the same villain. Maybe someone like… 

Kraven the Hunter

Kraven the Hunter is famously a longtime Spider-Man foe in the Marvel comics, but the villain has squared off against Black Panther as well — and with Kraven priding himself as the best hunter in the world, it makes sense a freshly unveiled Wakanda would catch his eye. 

In the comics, Kraven — real name Sergei Kravinoff — was a Russian hunter who imbibed a herbal potion to grant himself the abilities of superhuman strength, speed, and senses matching those of a jungle cat. 

That origin story isn’t too far off from T’Challa’s: Wakandan royalty utilize a plant called the heart-shaped herb to give them the powers of a fierce jungle beast, allowing them to become the superhuman Black Panther. 

What if Kraven, wanting to prove himself the world’s greatest hunter, ventures to Wakanda to steal and consume the heart-shaped herb? And now, having stolen one of Wakanda’s greatest treasures and in possession of superhuman abilities, Kraven is pursued overseas by T’Challa — and our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man gets caught in the mix. 

Black Panther director Ryan Coogler hoped to use Kraven in the earliest days of development — until he learned the character’s screen rights are held by rival studio Sony, who are rumored to be interested in developing spin-offs starring Kraven and famous Spidey rogue Mysterio. 

Even if T’Challa doesn’t make it into a Spider-Man movie, maybe the monumental success of Black Panther could see a deal be made — one allowing Marvel Studios’ use of Sony-controlled Kraven in Black Panther 2. 

If you were Sony, would you turn down the opportunity?

Spider-Man and Shuri Sitting in a Tree, T-E-A-M-I-N-G

A Spider-Man and Shuri team-up? Fans are calling for it. 

T’Challa’s younger sister, 16-year-old Wakandan genius and inventor Shuri (Letitia Wright), would play well off of Tom Holland’s wide-eyed science whiz Peter Parker, who undoubtedly would be “wowed” by Shuri’s James Bond-esque inventions and her sprawling super-lab. 

It would be interesting to explore Shuri outside of her home of Wakanda, and with her having traveled to Oakland, California in the closing minutes of Black Panther, the teen — who is already quite familiar with pop culture phenomena from the outside world — would make a perfect pairing for the nerdy Peter Parker, whether or not the relationship is strictly platonic or evolves into something more. 

Marvel Bros

Tom Holland congratulated Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman on Twitter Thursday, celebrating the groundbreaking release of the smash hit. 

“Thank you bro,” Boseman wrote in response, adding: “Next. We take on the world together,” referring to Avengers: Infinity War, which will unite the entirety of the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the first time.

It’s unknown how much screentime Holland and Boseman share in Infinity War, if any at all, but Marvel’s leading players almost always exhibit an uncanny chemistry — and we’re willing to bet a Spidey/Black Panther team up would be fire. 

What’s Next

Spider-Man will take part in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers 4 before returning in the currently untitled Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel. Spidey’s sequel kicks off Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which will also no doubt include a yet-to-be-announced Black Panther sequel. 

Marvel chief Kevin Feige hopes rising star Coogler returns for the Black Panther followup, saying he “absolutely” wants the filmmaker for the job. That movie could take one of the several Marvel Studios slots pegged for 2020 — May 1st, August 7th, and November 6th — one of which will see the release of James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.  

The Spider-Man sequel, directed by Homecoming‘s Jon Watts, swings into theaters July 5, 2019. Spidey and Black Panther will next appear in Avengers: Infinity War, out May 4, and again in Avengers 4, out May 3, 2019. 

Black Panther is now playing.