Thor: Love and Thunder hits theaters at the end of the week, but fans already have their sights set on the next installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Details on the highly anticipated film are being kept under lock and key, and many are hoping that a trailer might be released soon. Though Marvel Studios has been keeping things close to the vest, there have been a few leaks, with the latest apparently unveiling the first look at a new face. Tenoch Huerta, who is playing said MCU character, has now seemingly responded to the leaks in an A+ way.
For the past year, Black Panther 2 rumors have been circulating that claim that Tenoch Huerta – the first new actor cast in the production – will be playing Namor of Atlantis. This notion was seemingly confirmed this past weekend when promotional materials revealed his purported look in the Ryan Coogler-helmed flick. Shortly after the leak, social media was flooded with varied opinions, with some praising the costume choice and others panning it. This week, Heurta took to Twitter and, while he didn’t mention the premature reveals specifically, he did seem to poke fun with a photo and a Spanish caption that translates to “Tenoch images are leaked…” Check it out:
"Se filtran imágenes de Tenoch... " pic.twitter.com/pBeflmuGkgJuly 4, 2022
Marvel’s Namor the Sub-Mariner is a mighty hero, but he stands no chance against the power of Mermaid Man! But seriously though, this is a nice piece of trolling on the actor’s part. It’s not uncommon for leaks to occur ahead of a high-profile movie release, and it’s even more typical for fans to quickly take to the web to share their opinions. In situations like these, it’s probably best that stars take a page out of the Narcos: Mexico alum’s book and approach them with some cheeky humor.
Even before the rumors set in after Tenoch Huerta, fans had long-hoped to see the character enter the MCU at some point. That seemed like an impossibility for a long time because, for years, the film rights to the aquatic antihero belonged to Universal Pictures. Marvel Studios has not publicly clarified whether it reached a resolution with Universal, but the rumors seemed to suggest that an agreement was reached.
There’s still the question of how Namor would theoretically be used in the upcoming sequel. Well, for insight, one needn’t look any further than the comics, in which the Atlantean royal came into conflict with the African nation of Wakanda This resulted in a few tense fights between him and Black Panther. It’s possible that The Avenging Son will have a similar conflict with the likes of Shuri, Okoye and co. in Wakanda Forever due to T’Challa’s absence.
While specifics on T’Challa’s fate have not been divulged, stars like Danai Gurira have teased a truly “heart-wrenching” story. It’ll be difficult to be without the character, but Shuri actor Letitia Wright and others have stressed that the movie will honor the late Chadwick Boseman.
With Black Panther: Wakanda Forever still on track to release this year, official announcements will likely arrive sooner rather than later. That means it may not be long before we get our first official look at Tenoch Huerta’s character in action. I’m eagerly awaiting it, but I wouldn’t be mad at all if he continued to troll fans in the meantime, too.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is set to open in theaters on November 11th and, while you wait, you can stream the original 2018 movie with a Disney+ subscription.
