Black Panther Would Never Have Been Made if Disney Focused Solely on Data

Former Disney CEO Bob Iger says that, had the company relied too much on data, it might not have made 2018’s Black Panther.

In an interview with the New York Times, Iger — who served as Disney’s CEO from 2005 until 2020 — was asked about his successor, Bob Chapek, saying the company is now data-driven. Iger responded by making reference to a warning he gave in October about relying solely on data when it comes to creative projects. As Iger explained, “If we had tried to mine all the data that we had at the time to determine whether we should make a superhero movie that was essentially about an Afrofuturistic world with a Black cast, the data probably would have said, don’t do that, and Black Panther never would have been made.”

Set following the events of 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, Black Panther introduced audiences to the fictional African nation of Wakanda. In the movie, T’Challa/Black Panther leads the nation following the death of his father, T’Chaka, and is forced to contend with his cousin, N’Jadaka/Erik Stevens/Killmonger. Over the course of Black Panther, that conflict challenges T’Challa to pursue a new style of kingship and leads to Wakanda becoming a bigger player on the world stage.

At the box office, Black Panther made more than $1.34 billion against a budget of approximately $200 million, making it one of the highest-grossing films ever. Critically, Black Panther was incredibly well-received. At the time of writing, the movie holds a 96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, making it the highest-rated Marvel Cinematic Universe film on that review aggregator.

Following the release of Black Panther, a sequel was greenlit. Titled Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, production on the film has been troubled. In 2020, Boseman died at the age of 43 of colon cancer. At this time, Marvel Studios is not expected to replace Boseman, despite a high-profile petition to have someone else take up the mantle. Additionally, filming has been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and injuries suffered by Shuri actor Letitia Wright.

Directed by Ryan Coogler from a script by himself and Joe Robert Cole, Black Panther is available to stream now on Disney+. The film is also available on home media.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is slated for release on Nov. 11. The film will see Danai Gurira reprise her role as Okoye alongside Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross, Winston Duke as M’Baku, and Angela Bassett as Ramonda. Dominique Thorne will also appear in the movie as Riri Williams/Ironheart.

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Source: New York Times