Marvel’s Avengers Black Panther Christopher Judge talks about the legacy

“My mom is always right,” Christopher Judge told me in an interview before his starring role as King T’Challa, the Black Panther, in Marvel Avengers‘next War for Wakanda expansion.

Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix announced that Judge, known as the voice of Kratos in 2018 God of War and as Teal’c in Stargate SG-1 – would play Black Panther in a Entertainment Weekly interview mid-July. In the article, Judge revealed that he initially turned down the opportunity to voice T’Challa, believing that no one could do the role justice after Chadwick Boseman. But his mother, like his children, convinced him otherwise. On the other side of the experience, Judge told me that he felt lucky and blessed to be able to play T’Challa in the Crystal Dynamics video game adaptation.

“She’s always right,” Judge repeated.

Judge was cast as T’Challa, and the recording began, before Boseman’s death in August 2020. But speaking with both Judge and Evan Narcisse, a narrative consultant for War for Wakanda Y Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and writer of the Increase of black panther Comic: It became clear that his version of T’Challa would always be his own man.

Respect always, never emulate

Judge’s turn as T’Challa marks his second major video game appearance in which he plays a character that was already defined by the voice of another actor. Boseman introduced non-comic fans to T’Challa in Ryan Coogler’s 2018 film Black Panther, and TC Carson originated the role of Kratos. When I asked Judge how audience expectations affected his performance, he replied, “None,” in his famous deep voice.

“What another actor does with the character is what he does,” Judge said. “I always assume that I was probably hired for a specific reason, for a specific purpose. So, I always preface everything I do, which is so, it has to be my opinion. “Judge told me that he is fully aware of the” awesome and wonderful “performance that Boseman gave as Marvel Cinematic’s T’Challa. Universe, but said he never wanted to emulate her.

Judge worked with Beth McGuire, the dialect coach of the Black Panther movie, to nail the Wakandan accent and draw Judge away from his own lower register. The “lyrical” tone of the accent took Judge out of his comfort zone, he said, and out of the deep voice fans have come to expect of him, what Judge called his “money-making machine.” To do the accent correctly, he needed to speak in a very different voice than the one he is known for. But that plays on Judge’s own desire to distinguish himself.

Originality is a personal philosophy for Judge, and it goes beyond his own portrayal as the king of Wakanda. I asked Judge how, hypothetically, he would consult on a great Hollywood film adaptation of Stargate SG-1, reimagined like the JJ Abrams Star Trek movies. What would you say to the actor who plays Teal’c, a character that you made famous?

“Don’t look at any of the 10 seasons we did,” Judge laughed. “I’d say, ‘Make it yours,’ you know? It won’t change what I already did. […] I think that can be said of all artists. I mean, you have to do your own thing, you have to let the emotional makeup of the characters drop where possible and make them as honest as you can. “

A different T’Challa

Judge and Narcisse worked to create something that players hadn’t seen before. As a celebrated comic book writer, Narcisse’s work to War for Wakanda was to consult on the dialogues and concepts explored throughout history. Part of that involved helping create this new T’Challa. While Judge and Narcisse did not give any details, to avoid spoilers, our conversation suggested that the version of the character in Marvel Avengers he’s older, wiser, and tougher than the one fans have seen on the big screen. He is not the young man going through a personal crisis that Boseman portrayed. He is sure of himself and the role he plays in Wakanda. War for Wakanda It will not test if T’Challa is ready to be king, but rather, if he is ready to work with the Avengers and the outside world.

Narcisse wanted to make sure fans understood that, in addition to all the wonders of Wakanda, T’Challa himself is an impressive figure. This is a T’Challa who is not only strong but smart, a king that Tony Stark will be jealous of.

“Let’s remember that, yes, [T’Challa’s sister] Shuri is the smartest person in Wakanda. But T’Challa is not far behind, ”Narcisse said. “He is a genius in his own right. We should explore his scientific curiosity as part of his personality. [And] Let’s make sure this won’t be an Avengers narrative rushing in and saving the day. ”Narcisse clarified that no one on the Crystal Dynamics narrative team wanted to build a savior-type story for the Avengers, but wanted to be sure that the expansion it featured a Wakanda story first.

Narcisse and the Crystal Dynamics team were inspired by Christopher Priest’s prolific comic book career with the hero, which began in 1998 and featured a more experienced Black Panther than Boseman’s. A priest-inspired Black Panther should mean a darker T’Challa, and one that is less immediately likeable than the one players know from the MCU.

“It is definitely an ultra safe T’Challa. And I don’t want to use the word ‘arrogant,’ ”Judge smiled,“ but he’s very confident in his own abilities, Wakanda’s abilities to defend himself. And what are your thoughts on this collaborative effort? [with the Avengers], even if there is a reason to allow it. […] This is a king who enjoys the throne. “

This different T’Challa may have fans wondering why Crystal Dynamics didn’t choose a different character under Black Panther’s hood, perhaps King T’Chaka, father of T’Challa and Shuri. But according to Narcisse, this was always part of Crystal Dynamics’ plan, long before we knew that T’Challa would not be the MCU’s Black Panther in the future.

“We were already deeply committed to making this version of T’Challa different,” Narcisse said. “That’s just a kind of ordinary paradigm of superhero genre storytelling, right? Various versions of characters coexist with each other. […] Superhero characters are set up to exist in different iterations simultaneously, whether you use the multiverse as a device or not. “

While Narcisse and Judge’s T’Challa may behave differently, she is still the Black Panther. “Part of the spirit of the character that is the same is the notion that he’s some kind of anti-colonial superhero,” Narcisse said. “The roots of its power and purpose come from keeping Wakanda sovereign and capable of controlling its own destiny. So that’s the same thing, but the way he implements that philosophy and that sense of purpose is very different here. “

Judge and Narcisse’s work was difficult from the start – creating a different version of T’Challa in the shadow of Boseman is no small feat, and comparisons will be almost impossible to avoid after Boseman’s passing last year. But the Crystal Dynamics team, Judge and Narcisse committed to something unique with Marvel Avengers‘first expansion.

Marvel Avengers‘ War for Wakanda The expansion is free to all players and will be released by Crystal Dynamics on August 17.