Black Panther is a superhero film like no other. Where most Marvel movies introduce us to a superhero, this film welcomes viewers to an entire fictional African country. In artistic terms, it's beyond anything fans have seen before. It's a stunning exercise in world-building, revealing Wakanda as almost a character in its own right. Black Panther is so effective because the production crew put a tremendous amount of effort into it. They created a stunning range of sets and costumes, dazzling the eye. Some scenes were filmed exclusively for IMAX screens, making the movie an even more remarkable visual success.

Supporting the theatrical release, Marvel Worldwide has published Black Panther: The Art of the Movie. It's a beautiful hardcover book, filled with stunning concept art and exclusive interviews with the production crew. Here at Screen Rant, we've sifted through this book for the major reveals. It's time for us to welcome everyone to Wakanda!

This Page: Secrets Of Wakanda

12. Where in the World is Wakanda?

Obviously, Wakanda is in Africa, but nowhere in Black Panther is it shown where exactly the nation is hidden. The art book provides a map of the small, tribal nation, and in doing so confirms that it's situated on the East African Rift Valley. It shares borders with Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda.

Related: Marvel's Black Panther: 23 Things You Completely Missed

We had actually got a clue towards this in MCU years ago. In 2010, Iron Man 2 dropped a Wakandan Easter egg into the background of Tony's S.H.I.E.L.D. debrief - one of the organization's points of interest was in the middle of the African continent, right where its in-universe location ended up being.

11. Wakanda was Unified 10,000 Years Ago

Black Panther

In Black Panther, we get a brief history of Wakanda in the opening of the film, explaining how it became a major deposit of Vibranium, the development of the Heart-Shaped Herb, and how the first Panther, Bashenga, united warring Stone Age tribes. The Black Panther Art Book goes deeper into that past, revealing more details.

The sacred mountain containing the Vibranium is named Mount Bashenga, after Wakanda's first King. It's possible that Bashenga himself established the ancient Hall of Kings. Whatever the case, this makes Wakanda the oldest civilization on Earth; while the rest of the world was still in the Stone Age, Wakanda was beginning to explore the mysteries of Vibranium.

Surprisingly, the Vibranium mine itself may be one of the oldest sites in the film. Production Designer Hannah Beachler actually planned out the mine's entire history. She consulted with mining experts, and worked out how mining in Africa would work outside the context of colonization. The swirling ramp in Shuri's lab, for example, is actually an ancient drill bit. It was once used to drill into the heart of the mountain. "It could have been 5,000 years ago," Beachler observed, "and they stopped using that type of mining."

Related: Black Panther's Ending Explained In Detail

10. Not Every Black Panther Is King

Black Panther - Mid-credits scene

The Black Panther Prelude comic revealed that T'Challa became Black Panther back in 2008. That fact has surprised and confused some fans, who incorrectly assumed that the Black Panther has to be Wakanda's king. As The Art of Black Panther clarifies, that's not necessarily the case.

"While Wakanda's ruler does not always serve as both Panther and king, it is not unusual for those two people to be one and the same. From the first Black Panther - Bashenga, born 10,000 years ago - to the current incarnation, this tradition has ensured their ciilization's survival."

Read More: Black Panther Made One Big Change To Comic Book T'Challa

9. The Tribes of Wakanda

The Art of Black Panther includes a section dedicated to each of Wakanda's tribes, and a map shows where each tribe is based. The various tribes are:

  • The Border Tribe, who appear to be simple shepherds and farmers to the rest of the world. In reality, they're Wakanda's first line of defense. While most Border tribesmen ride horses, a select few have been chosen by young rhino calves to bond with them. They ride these rhinos into battle.
  • The River Tribe, found along the Amanzi Kwakhona Umlambo - the longest river in Wakanda. At the King's request, the River tribe can shut down the river with Vibranium dams. When designing these costumes, Marvel took inspiration from the Tsamai and Suri tribes in southwestern Ethiopia, and the Wagenia fishermen in the DRC.
  • The Mining Tribe, who mine all minerals in Wakanda, not just Vibranium. Their sacred duty is to maintain exacting records of how Vibranium is used.
  • The Merchant Tribe, who manufacture and distribute clothing and goods across Wakanda. They were originally two tribes, the Merchant and Artisan tribes, but merged.
  • The Jabari Tribe, the only tribe in Wakanda who do not worship Bast. They reject the use of Vibranium, which is associated with Bast, and instead embrace older traditions; they've become master carpenters. The design for the Jabari is based on the Karo tribe in Ethiopia and the Dagon tribe in Mali.

The tribal leaders convene in a council chamber, one of the most remarkable sets in the film. It's designed to evoke the concept of the "circle of life." Wakandans venerate their history, and as a result the leaders meet atop the ruins of an ancient tribal building. Beachler had the set marked with inscriptions in an old Nigerian language called the Leopard Society, which she found amusing. "Leopard, Black Panther," she quipped. "It's the same."

Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), Okoye (Danai Gurira), and Chadwick Boseman (T'Challa / Black Panther)

8. Okoye is Wakanda's James Bond

In the run-up to Black Panther's theatrical release, Marvel described the film as the MCU's James Bond. But, appropriately enough, it seems they don't view T'Challa as their version of 007. They actually consider it to be Okoye, the warrior-spy who is loyal to King and Country, the best fighter in the nation. At the same time, Marvel mixed things up by giving Okoye something of a near-sibling relationship with T'Challa. "There's a real friendship there between a man and a woman that is not romantic at all, " Executive Producer Nate Moore noted. "But [it] has the depth of any other friendship you've had in real life."

Related: Black Panther's Women Are More Proof Marvel Should Make A-Force

7. M'Baku Is An Important Figure

In the comics, M'Baku - better known as the Man-Ape - is a villain. In Black Panther, however, he's a much more ambiguous figure; although the Jabari chieftain starts off as an antagonist, he has a strong moral code too. Winston Duke explained that he views M'Baku as truly important in Wakanda.

"I like M'Baku because he also serves a really great moral function. He reminds them of their past, which is easy to forget. He reminds them of tradition, of the gods. He reminds them of service and patience. So he's laden with a lot of things that matter."

M'Baku has been confirmed to return in Avengers: Infinity War, and hopefully his story will continue into the inevitable Black Panther sequel.

6. Killmonger's Scars Were Properly "Researched"

Killmonger in Hall of Kings

When Marvel first released the Black Panther trailer, eagle-eyed fans noticed the strange scars marking Killmonger's body. The movie explained that each scar represented a kill, and The Art of Black Panther explores the idea. Concept artists Rodney Fuentebella revealed just how much work went into this:

"We spent a lot of time doing the designs of [Killmonger's] scarification. That was something that was very important, so a bunch of us did a lot of takes on his scarification and tried to come up with something that he could do himself that shows different types of patterns and how he would do it - if it would be chaotic, or if it would be very systematic."

Related: Black Panther: Is Killmonger Really Marvel's Best Villain?

One of the concept artists went so far as to plot the markings in a mirror, working out which parts of his body Killmonger would be able to reach with a knife. The scars were an important statement, and Killmonger openly displayed them once he'd become king of Wakanda. He wanted to remind everyone that he could kill them if he wanted to, and that he'd claimed the throne by the act of ritual murder.

5. Shuri Originally Had Her Own Black Panther Costume

Although the major character concepts seem to have stayed the same, Marvel experimented with a wide range of designs for secondary characters. Shuri's journey, in particular, seems to be a fascinating one. Concept artist Karla Ortiz explained that it was important to avoid sexualizing the character. "Her body is covered more than what most audiences tend to expect of female characters in super-hero movies," she noted.

Different designs played disparate elements against one another. Some emphasized Wakanda's tribal roots. Others were sleek and form-fitting, very much sci-fi; it seemed a fitting design given her genius. Concept artist Tully Summers originally created a scaled-down version of the Black Panther costume, with Vibranium power lines across it. Little by little, that was "deconstructed" into the ritual costume she wore at Warrior Falls.

Royal Black Panther Jet

4. The Royal Talon Fighter

The Royal Talon Fighter is essentially Wakanda's Air Force One, T'Challa's royal aircraft flown by the Dora Milaje. Typical Wakandan aircraft are functional, but this is the vehicle of a king, and as a result it has a luxurious interior. "We didn't want it to look like a spaceship because they're not in space," Beachler explained, "but we wanted it to feel like a very luxurious aircraft that has all of the bells and whistles that Vibranium can give it." Marvel initially produced two designs. The first was based around the peafowl. But the second, the most interesting design, was based on a tribal mask.

One of the film's key scenes is the moment when T'Challa disembarks the Royal Talon Fighter, returning to his homeland as the new king. Concept artist Rodney Fuentebella researched a lot of royal shots, how films show royalty engaging with one another. "I wanted to have this very symmetrical feel where it felt very strong," he revealed, "and how Black Panther is stationed in the middle and he's lit from behind and you have sense of him carrying a burden."

3. How Shuri's Interface Works

Shuri's interface is perhaps the most remarkable piece of technology in the film. As Beachler explained, "We knew what Tony Stark's interface looked like and I was totally against doing a hologram, because that's what we see all the time." That decision meant she was essentially worked with technology that doesn't yet exist; this was entirely within the realms of science-fiction.

Related: Every Piece Of Black Panther's Armor And Tech Explained

Considering the possibilities, Beachler recalled that Shuri's lab was inside the Great Mound.

"If we're in the Vibranium mine, and they're extracting the Vibranium, the rock melts away around it, and when it melts it becomes like lava sand. So, our sand is going to be black, and it's going to be almost like nanites. Shuri's whole [lab] floor has a bunch of these sandboxes. When she makes the Lexus for the car chase in Korea, the sandbox frame drops and the extra sand drops, but it leaves the shape of a car - a car that you can get in and drive."

2. Black Panther's Costume Could Have Been Blue Or Red

Black Panther gives T'Challa a whole new costume, one with a stunning new powerset. The Vibranium outfit doesn't just absorb kinetic energy - it also releases it. As the suit builds up a charge, purple markings gradually take shape on it, modeled from tribal tattoos.

But this design could have been very different; Marvel actually toyed with a range of colors, including blue and red. According to concept artist Adi Granov, the actual markings are in the Wakandan alphabet, created by a member of the design team.

Read More: Black Panther's Costume Was Almost A Different Color

1. Warrior Falls Was The Most Important Black Panther Set

Situated on the river Amanzi Kwakhona Umlambo, Warrior Falls is the site of Black Panther's ritual challenge. The location is lifted straight from the comics, and the production team visited waterfalls in Africa for research. "The inspiration for [Warrior Falls] was Oribi Gorge in South Africa," Beachler revealed. The production crew spent a great deal of time walking and hiking, looking at the rock structures. They then created a massive set.

"The whole set is actually industrial styrofoam, and then we plastered over it. The pool has a special epoxy on it for the water and for the fighting because when they go down, we want to make sure that they're not getting hurt. We were thinking about the safety of the stunt people and the actors, so it needed to be a little bit softer. We foamed it, put epoxy down on it, and painted it to look like a rock face on the bottom of the pool."

All the Black Panther sets are stunning, but Warrior Falls - a key location in both the movies and the comics - is clearly the piece de resistance.

Next: Can Black Panther Make $1 Billion?

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