Black Panther: Will Namor get his own movie?

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is significantly expanding at a rate that’s considered impressive by the production rate. The recently released Black Panther movie has also contributed to that growth. Moreover, Phase 4 picked up speed in introducing new characters, as almost every new project out of the 17 movies, series, special presentations, and shorts brought in at least one new face. However, a character from Phase 4 who has proved to be noteworthy of discussion is Namor the Submariner.

Namor in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Ryan Coogler gave Tenoch Huerta’s Namor a well-rounded introduction in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The underwater nation of Talokan was shown differently from the Atlantis showcased in Marvel comics and DCU. Moreover, there was enough footage of Talokan throughout the Black Panther film for fans to be excited for further exploration in a future Namor movie.

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Will Marvel produce a solo Namor movie after Black Panther 2?

Producer Nate Moore on Namor's Chances (Image via Marvel)

To put it simply, the answer is no. While there was plenty of setup for Namor’s future in the MCU, the chances of his solo movie are still quite slim. Unfortunately, Marvel doesn’t own the complete rights to the Submariner as those movie rights stand with Universal.

It is another Hulk-like situation where Namor can only be a part of other MCU projects, and Marvel cannot produce a solo movie for him. During a sit-down with The Wrap, Wakanda Forever producer Nate Moore said:

"It honestly affects us more, and not to talk too much out of school, but in how we market the film than it does how we use him in the film. There weren’t really things we couldn’t do from a character perspective for him, which is good because clearly, we took a ton of inspiration from the source material,"

He further added:

"But we also made some big changes to really anchor him in that world in a truth that publishing never really landed on, I would argue, in a big way."

While this does stand to be true for now, those asking “Will Namor get his own movie?” could still be in for a surprise. Rumors suggest that the rights of Hulk and Namor could revert back to MCU in the next couple of years. If that happens, then both the Marvel characters could be expected to get their long-due solo outings. Until then, Namor and Hulk are set to return to the next Avengers films.

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How Black Panther 2 sets up a potential Namor movie (If his rights get reverted)

Namor and Namora in Black Panther 2 (Image via Marvel)

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever laid plenty of groundwork for Namor to continue his story in his solo outing. He is one of the strongest new characters to come into the mix, and Tenoch Huerta portrayed him with sheer excellence. Therefore, there’s plenty of fan interest in seeing the antihero become the centerpiece of his own project.

As per Wakanda Forever’s ending, Namor agreed to yield and become Wakanda’s ally. However, this move didn’t please Namora, who raised the issue with her cousin. Both Namora and Attuma were strong believers in Namor, and the people of Talokan saw him as their K'uk'ulkan (the Feather Serpent God). However, after his defeat, they might lose their belief in him.

Attuma vs Namor (Image via Marvel)

In the MCU, Attuma seemed like the general who wanted Talokan to dominate Wakanda and the rest of the surface world. Now, with the change in Namor’s own beliefs, Attuma and others in Talokan might deem him unworthy of being king. He could play to dethrone Namor and cause an underwater civil war. After all, he is the latter's arch-nemesis in the comics.

Besides Black Panther, Namor has fought Attuma time and time again in the comics. Hence, this Talokanil civil war storyline could form the basis for a potential Namor movie, with the central focus of the plot being the conflict between Attuma and Namor. After all, that's how Marvel turns the former into the big villain he is in the comics!

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Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is currently playing in theaters worldwide.