We are accepting of new heroes and new mythologies, and in fact we’re more accepting of heroes of all colors and genders.

“One of the things we are going to see behind the success of this character is that we as Americans don’t need to see the same story over and over. This is something that is completely new, completely different as far as superhero movies go.

“It is not the third different actor playing the same character. “This is not a recycled superhero story,” he said. Drawing attention as one of the first superhero movies to feature a person of color as the main character, it follows the release of “Wonder Woman,” which featured the first female superhero star on the big screen.Īudiences are clamoring for something different from traditional Hollywood superhero movies, and there’s a much broader appeal than normal that is driving the high expectations, Holland said. The movie is poised for a majorly successful box office opening weekend. I already have them all in my basement right now.” “I told Marvel I’d love to take it on and they offered to send me some Black Panther comic books for research, and I said, ‘Don’t bother. “When I was at Ole Miss, me and my friends would drive from campus all the way to Memphis to comic book shops on Wednesday or Thursday nights when the new ones came out and pick them up. “I’ve been reading comic books my entire life,” Holland said. Rap megastar Kendrick Lamar produced the soundtrack.īeing asked to write the novel, “Black Panther: Who is the Black Panther?” was a dream come true, Holland said. The novel was released last fall as part of efforts to promote the new $200 million movie, which stars Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa, and features Forest Whitaker and Lupita Nyong’o. The goal was to create a new world for the main character, T’Challa, set in modern times. Holland, a Holly Springs native who graduated from the university in 1994 with a degree in journalism, was tasked in 2016 with retelling the story through a 90,000-word origin story novel based on material in six comics. was tapped by Marvel to reintroduce the world to the 1960s “Black Panther” superhero franchise through a new novel ahead of this weekend’s release of the blockbuster film about T’Challa, ruler of Wakanda. – University of Mississippi alumnus Jesse Holland Jr. has written a novel for Marvel to reintroduce its 1960s superhero ‘Black Panther,’ the main character in a new blockbuster film.

Black panther jesse holland