M’Baku is trouble for Black Panther.
But M’Baku was also a potential problem forBlack Pantherthe movie.
Rather than abandon one of Black Panther’s most famous antagonists, Marvel Studios decided to rescue M’Baku.
Credit: Kwaku Alston/©Marvel Studios 2018
Not that this makes him a nice guy.
Still, the filmmakers felt that “Man-Ape” would never be an easy name for newcomers to accept.
“We don’t call him Man-Ape,” executive producer Nate Moore told EW during our set visit.
Marvel Studios
“We do call him M’Baku.”
The problem was self-evident.
“Wakanda is not a monolithic place.
They have a lot of different factions.”
They live amongst each other, and together they make the identity of those countries.
That’s something we tried to capture.
We wanted it to feel like a country, as opposed to just one city or town."
“In M’Baku’s worldview, T’Chaka made a huge mistake going to the U.N.,” Moore says.
“‘We should never engage with the outside world.
That’s a terrible mistake.
He has a better suggestion for king: himself.
It’s a line I think we’re walking, and hopefully walking successfully.”
M’Baku is a really interesting character, and I’m excited for people to get to see him."
Black Pantheropens Feb. 16.
