Marvel Studios is gearing up to launch the third phase of their Marvel Cinematic Universe with the premiere of Captain America: Civil War, the third installment in the series of films following Steve Rogers a.k.a. Captain America (Chris Evans). Captain America: Civil War will see conflict between Steve Rogers and fellow member of The Avengers, Tony Stark a.k.a. Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), which pits many other heroes from the MCU against each other as they align with either Captain America or Iron Man.
In addition to Phase 3, Captain America: Civil War will also act as the launch pad to two other film series, Spider-Man and Black Panther, since the movie will also feature the first appearances of these heroes: Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), respectively. Both new heroes have been featured in promotional material leading up to Captain America: Civil War, but new concept art reveals a closer look at Black Panther’s suit.
The concept art (below) was featured in the Captain America 75th Anniversary Magazine [h/t ComicBookMovie] and offers two close-up looks at the headpiece of the Black Panther suit as well as two full-body images without the headpiece. All the concept art was drawn by Ryan Meinerding - whose art was first released during the presentation in which Captain America: Civil War was announced and Boseman was revealed to be playing T’Challa in the film.
Additionally, Meinerding spoke about his process in designing the concept art for the suit:
Of course, the introduction of T’Challa, Black Panther, and his home of Wakanda began in Captain America: The First Avenger, which introduced Cap’s Vibranium shield - created by Tony’s father, Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper). Then Wakanda was teased again in Avengers: Age of Ultron when the Avengers came across Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis) who had Wakandan Vibranium in his possession. Now, with T’Challa joining the MCU, the Black Panther suit is another opportunity to see Vibranium in action - such as with the hero’s claws.
“The overall concept is that it’s a woven suit - on a more granular level, there is Vibranium woven into the fabric. This Vibranium thread would provide a silver sheen so that when it catches the light, it would glisten a bit. From there we tried to create a design language for patterns to fit very subtly into the hard Vibranium pieces that are woven through the suit.”
That being said, it’s unlikely Captain America: Civil War will be able to delve too deeply into the history and culture of Wakenda since the film will largely be focused on the conflict between Captain America and Iron Man - though T’Challa will certainly be involved since trailers and posters have established he sides with Team Iron Man. But, early reactions and reviews of Captain America: Civil War seem to be overwhelmingly positive. So, while Black Panther may not be the focus of Civil War, it seems the film will provide a compelling launch pad for the hero’s solo outing from director Ryan Coogler.
Next: Chadwick Boseman On Captain America: Civil War’s Themes
Captain America: Civil War will release on May 6, 2016, followed by Doctor Strange – November 4, 2016; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – May 5, 2017; Spider-Man: Homecoming – July 7, 2017; Thor: Ragnarok – November 3, 2017; Black Panther – February 16, 2018; The Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 – May 4, 2018; Ant-Man and the Wasp – July 6, 2018; Captain Marvel – March 8, 2019; The Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 – May 3, 2019; Inhumans – July 12, 2019; and as-yet untitled Marvel movies on May 1, July 10 and November 6, 2020.
Source: Captain America 75th Anniversary Magazine [via ComicBookMovie]
