For about as long as we knew that Black Panther would be introduced in Captain America: Civil War, we’ve known he was going to be a pivotal character in the story. But exactly how he would fit into the existing universe was far from clear. Now we have a bit more detail about how the African hero chooses his side, or more accurately, how it’s chosen for him.
We already heard the rumor that Black Panther’s primary goal in the new film was to take down The Winter Soldier. Now a new report is confirming that this is the case. As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. This appears to be the relationship that Panther and Iron Man will have in Civil War. It doesn’t sound like the two will necessarily agree on much. Instead, the two have a common interest in taking down Captain America’s best friend Bucky Barnes, and so they will work together.
According to the story in Entertainment Weekly, Black Panther has "serious issues" with the Winter Soldier -- so he’s not a hired gun or a soldier doing his job. Rather, Panther (Chadwick Boseman) has his own motives, whatever they may be. Bucky Barnes may no longer be The Winter Soldier anymore, but that guy did a lot of bad stuff in his day, so it’s possible he spent some time in Africa making people’s lives difficult.
The Black Panther’s allegiance is also described as being "in flux," which implies that while things may begin with Panther and Iron Man on the same side, they may not necessarily end that way. It’s heavily implied in the current trailer for Captain America: Civil War that The Winter Soldier is not too blame for the event at the film’s center, if this is eventually made clear to Black Panther we may see him switch sides.
If this is the case, we could very well see Black Panther play the kingmaker role in the movie. If he switches sides between Iron Man and Captain America, he could very well shift the balance of power in the film when he does so. We’ve seen where most of the characters are going to land when sides are chosen, and if both Black Panther and Spider-Man join Iron Man’s side, as has been implied, it certainly gives the guy in the metal suit a serious advantage.
Captain America: Civil War will only be the set up for an eventual Black Panther film in 2018, so whatever side he ends up will have repercussions long past this movie. How do you want to see Black Panther get used in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
