When Black Panther kicks off next year, T'Challa will find himself facing Erik Killmonger, a fellow Wakandan who has a different vision for how the country should be run. But Killmonger won't be the only bad guy causing trouble for T'Challa, as arms dealer Ulysses Klaue will be back in action following his introduction in Avengers: Age of Ulron. While Killmonger is dangerous because he is trying to steal the throne from T'Challa, Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman attributes Klaue's dangerousness to being an outsider who knows too much about Wakanda. Boseman observed:
You have Wakanda, which is an isolationist society, Klaue has entered that space and knows more about it than anybody else. Because of that, he is a threat. Not to mention that he's accessed this gift that could also be a curse to the rest of the world.
Chadwick Boseman later described Ulysses Klaue as the "Osama bin Laden" of Black Panther to EW, as he's a terrorist T'Challa knows is out there and will eventually have to track down him down because it's only a matter of time before he returns. Because of Wakanda's isolationism, few outside of its borders know about the country's technological achievements and true wonders, and Klaue is definitely not the kind of person you want knowing this kind of information. Throw in his criminal network and obsession with weaponizing vibranium, and it makes sense why Erik Killmonger wants to team up with him to overthrow T'Challa and the Wakandan government.
Ulysses Klaue made his MCU debut during Avengers: Age of Ulron when Ultron took Klaues's supply of vibranium in exchange for tremendous financial compensation. However, when Klaue noticed the similarities between the robotic villain and Tony Stark, Ultron freaked out and ripped his arm off, and the weapons merchant limped away as Earth's Mightiest Heroes arrived on the scene. Judging by his interaction with CIA agent Everett Ross in the first Black Panther trailer, he's become mentally unhinged since then, but he'll nonetheless pose a threat to Black Panther, his allies and all of Wakanda. Like his "Klaw" comic book counterpart, Andy Serkis' Klaue will also use an arm cannon, which in this continuity is made from Wakandan mining equipment.
Set shortly after the events of Captain America: Civil War, Black Panther will follow T'Challa struggling with his new royal duties right as Erik Killmonger and Ulysses Klaue start causing trouble in Wakanda, requiring the prince to team up with the Dora Milaje and Everett Ross to make sure their plans don't succeed. Aside from Any Serkis and Chadwick Boseman, the movie's main cast includes Michael B. Jordan, Angela Bassett, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Forest Whitaker, Winston Duke, Letitia Wright, Sterling K. Brown, Daniel Kaluuya, John Kani and Martin Freeman.
Black Panther slashes its way into theaters on February 16, 2018.
