While Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will introduce Namor the Sub-Mariner to moviegoers, Marvel Studios president and Marvel Entertainment chief creative officer Kevin Feige has revealed that the company had planned to bring the anti-hero to the big screen for quite some time.At the world premiere of Wakanda Forever, Feige was asked about the decision to have Namor appear in the movie, to which he said that having the Emperor of the Deep enter the MCU was "forever on [Marvel Studios'] lists," even commissioning a script 18 years ago, though the timing and idea were never right. Feige continued, "[Director and co-writer] Ryan Coogler, on the first [Black Panther] movie, started pitching a war between kingdoms. And if you actually added a cultural specificity to Namor, and that's certainly what he's done in this movie." Feige ended by reiterating that Namor will rule Talokan in the film and noting that he can't wait for people to meet Namor and his people in it, the Talokanil.
Namor ruling Talokan and not Atlantis was a topic that had previously been discussed by the character's actor, Tenoch Huerta. "You can take Atlantis from Greek myth, or you can adapt from a real culture," he said. Additionally, Feige recently stated that Coogler had also pitched a post-credits scene for the first film that teased Namor, with said scene having the camera moving through the Wakandan palace and having the audience see wet footprints that were leading to the throne.
Besides Feige and Huerta, M'Baku actor Wintson Duke also spoke about Huerta's upcoming take on Namor, who Duke at one time saw as "another Aquaman." According to Duke, the MCU's version feels more real, adding that Marvel Studios has "grounded it in real cultural significance and cultural traditions," and that one can see the Latino contingent in it. "Ryan Coogler's creation within the Marvel cinematic landscape is one of deep honor and connection to real stuff," the actor concluded. "So I think a lot of people are gonna see themselves represented."
Ironically, Huerta didn't know he was cast as Namor until some time later, a fact he cited as being caused by a messy Zoom call. Huerta remarked that while he was speaking to Coogler, the call temporarily froze and after it began working again, Huerta thanked Coogler despite not knowing what he was saying. The following day, Huerta was surprised when he found out he was being offered the part of Namor.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever arrives in theaters on Nov. 11.
Source: Twitter