11 Black Panther Easter Eggs You May Have Missed

Black Panther is finally here and it's proven to be yet another smashing success for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Arguably even more so than most, however, as it's produced a lot of talk about it being a cultural landmark that raises some big questions about racial identity. Something else that's unusual about the film is that it's surprisingly standalone for a franchise that's become more and more comfortable in tying each entry into the events of prior movies. Apart from a bit of backstory established in Captain America: Civil War, you hardly even need to know much else about the MCU to appreciate Black Panther. Because of that, the movie is perhaps not as stuffed full of easter eggs as most Marvel films. That said, there are still many callbacks to the comic books, other MCU efforts and more hidden within. As such, we've decided to comb through the pic to find 11 of the most significant, that you may not've caught yourself. Before we continue, though, we should say that we'll be treading into spoiler territory here. So, if you want to see the film completely fresh, then bookmark this page and return once you've had the chance to experience what Ryan Coogler and co. have to offer. Fathers And Sons Black Panther's opening checks in on the family feud between the late King T'Chaka and his brother N'Jobu, when the latter was revealed to have conspired with Ulysses Klaue to smuggle Vibranium out of Wakanda. If you thought the actor playing the young T'Chaka looked a lot like John Kani, who plays the older king, there's a reason for that. It's Atandwa Kani, the real life son of John. It's also a nice bonus that Atandwa looks a lot like his on-screen son, Chadwick Boseman. If you check the credits, you'll also see that the young Zuri is played by Denzel Whitaker. So, did they pull the same trick with this character and get a relative of Forest Whitaker to play his younger self? Funnily enough, no, it's just a coincidence that the two actors playing the same character have the same name. That said, Denzel Whittaker did play Forest's son in 2007's The Great Debaters. Which, if you want to complicate it even further, also starred Denzel Washington, who Whitaker's named after. Still with us? Black Panther To The Future When T'Challa goes to his sister Shuri to get his new gear, she shows him some prototype shoes that form around his feet. She says that she got the idea from "an old American movie" that their father, King T'Chaka, used to watch a lot. As far as we can tell, this is a nod to the iconic self-lacing sneakers from 1989's Back to the Future Part II. If you're thinking that the film isn't that old, then remember that Peter Parker called 1980's The Empire Strikes Back a "really old movie" back in Captain America: Civil War. There's potentially another unlikely reference as well when Shuri looks horrified at T'Challa's sandals. "What are those?" she asks him. This is very reminiscent of that viral video where the guy asks a cop about his choice of footwear. The Next Black Panther One character the fans have instantly taken to from Black Panther is Letitia Wright's Shuri, T'Challa's genius little sister. Not only does she act as his own personal Q, supplying him with high tech gadgets, but she can handle herself out in the field, too. It's not a surprise, then, that the character succeeds her brother as Black Panther in the comics. An allusion to this is hidden in the film as well, specifically in the design of her sonic gauntlets. They're clearly modelled after panther heads. Likewise, there are a pair of panther-like teeth on her chin-guard. Interestingly, Wright has said that Ryan Coogler was tempted to hint at Shuri taking up the mantle in the movie, but ultimately decided against it in order to focus on T'Challa. However, the actress remains open to it occurring at some point in the future of the MCU. The Ancestral Realm There's always a mystical edge to Black Panther's powers in the comics and, to its credit, the movie doesn't shy away from this. From the beginning, it introduces the idea that a meteorite containing an alien metal crashed into Africa millions of years ago, making Wakanda home to - amongst other things - the heart-shaped herb that grants the Panther his powers. Something that isn't really explained in the film, though, is the "ancestral realm" that the incumbent king of Wakanda is able to visit when they drink a special potion and are buried in sand as a kind of sensory deprivation. In the comics, this realm is known as Djalia, an astral plane created from the collective memories of the Wakandan people. There's an intriguiing fan theory that the sand is key to this trip to the afterlife - and for a good reason. Some think it could be derived from the Soul Infinity Stone, which we know will be coloured orange. Is this, perhaps, how the final Stone will factor into Infinity War? M'Baku Black Panther takes a fair amount of liberties when it comes to adapting its characters from the comic book page, but one of the most altered is M'Baku, as played by Winston Duke in the film. In the comics, M'Baku is more usually known as the supervillain Man-Ape and is one of Black Panther's most persistent foes. He's much more primal and savage than the MCU version - he's even known to eat rare white gorilla flesh in order to increase his strength. The film instead casts the character as the leader of the rival J'Bari tribe and later a reluctant ally of T'Challa's. Though his comic book name is avoided for obvious reasons, there are hints to his roots in the source material in his choice of white gorilla fur clothing and his preferred term of address: "Great gorilla M'Baku." This also isn't the last time we'll see the character, as Duke has confirmed that M'Baku will have a sizeable role in Avengers: Infinity War. Klaue And Sokovia Obviously, Black Panther features a fair few callbacks to Captain America: Civil War, as that's the movie that saw King T'Challa make his MCU debut. However, there are also a few nods to an earlier film that sowed the seeds for the introduction of the character: 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron. When T'Challa bumps into Everett Ross for the first time at the casino in Busan, South Korea, the CIA agent explains that they've been on Klaue's tail since Sokovia. This refers to Ultron's attack on the fictional European country. It seems the CIA were able to trace Ultron's supply of Vibranium back to Klaue. Speaking of which, the villain is armless in the movie, thanks to Ultron chopping his right hand off. In its place, he has a high tech sonic cannon made from Vibranium. This is very similar to his deadly artificial limb from the comics, though this one also comes disguised as a regular hand. Stan Lee's Cameo This is a Marvel movie so, of course, Stan Lee has to have a cameo. And he deserves this one more than most, as Lee co-created T'Challa with his frequent collaborator Jack Kirby in 1966. He's also been a vocal champion of the often underrated character over the years, citing him as his favourite to get his own movie. Lee's Black Panther cameo, then, showcases his usual tongue-in-cheek sense of humour and cheeky charm. At the Korean casino, Lee appears as an old gambler who gallantly looks after T'Challa's winnings "for safe keeping." It's a little less scene stealing than some of his other recent cameos have been, but it's still good fun nonetheless. And remember, thanks to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, we now know that all of Lee's cameos see him playing the same guy. No doubt he's going to recount the tale of the time he stole Black Panther's chips to the Watchers at some point. Killmonger The role of the big bad of Black Panther is filled admirably by Michael B. Jordan's Killmonger, definitely one of the most layered antagonists the MCU has ever produced. We have writer/director Ryan Coogler to thank for much of that texture as the original comic book character, while still cool, is very different. In the source material, Erik Killmonger was exiled by T'Challa for his thirst to take Wakanda back to its traditional roots. This is completely inverted in the film, as Jordan's Killmonger wants to bring the country into the modern era and wage war on the rest of the world. Despite the differences, though, there are nods to the comics version. In his first scene, Killmonger pilfers an ancient African mask from the fictional Museum of Great Britain, which he later wears when busting Klaue out of jail. This is a close match for the mask the character dons in the source material. The golden necklace he wears during his stint as king, meanwhile, is also borrowed from the comics, though it doesn't usually belong to Erik. It looks a lot like that which is worn by Black Panther in most versions. Importance Of Oakland Sticking with Killmonger for a moment, Black Panther switches his comic book hometown of Harlem for Oakland, California. It's a small change, but it adds an extra personal and thematic dimension to the film. First of all, Oakland is the hometown of Ryan Coogler, so it's clear that he put a lot of his own childhood experiences in those flashback scenes to Killmonger's youth. Secondly, it also just so happens that Oakland is the city where the Black Panther Party originates from. Comic book fans may know that Stan Lee originally named his Marvel superhero after the socialist organization, which were very prominent in the 1960s. Lastly, the end of the movie sees T'Challa return to Oakland and promise to build a Wakandan Outreach Centre to improve the neighbourhood. While there, he talks to a kid playing basketball. This is Alex Hibbert, who played Little Chiron in the Oscar-winning Moonlight. He even nabs the loaded last line of the movie: "Who are you?" Another Broken White Boy When T'Challa, Nakia and Okoye return from Korea, they bring back Everett Ross with them in order to save him after he took a bullet for Nakia. Shuri is excited to have another patient to work on, saying that they've brought her "another broken white boy" to fix. This is a callback to the post-credits scene of Captain America: Civil War. After Bucky was found to still be brainwashed by HYDRA, Steve Rogers took his old pal to Wakanda where he was cryogenically frozen until a cure could be found for his conditioning. As Black Panther reveals that Shuri is the greatest scientific mind in the country, it only makes sense that she was the one to study his condition. However, there is still more to the story... White Wolf While the movie's first post-credits scene simply continues the plot, the second offers the expected tease for the upcoming Avengers: Infinity War. It reveals that Bucky is now off ice and living low amongst Wakandan villagers. The local children, it seems, call him "White Wolf." Shuri arrives to talk to Bucky, as she shows him around the beautiful countryside. So, why is Bucky unfrozen so soon? Has he really been cured of his conditioning? Well, the film itself doesn't offer any clues, but Black Panther's official tie-in comic does provide all the answers. It's explained in the book that Shuri devised an algorithm to flush the brainwashing out of Bucky's mind. She cited that the process basically involved rebooting him like a computer. Later on in the comic, Shuri also took the time to claim that she's even smarter than Tony Stark! We look forward to seeing the characters butt intellects if they eventually meet in Infinity War.