Lupita Nyong’o in Talks to Star in Marvel’s ‘Black Panther

Photo from Variety

Lupita Nyong’o is in talks to play the love interest of Chadwick Boseman’s superhero in Marvel’s “The Black Panther,” sources confirmed to Variety.

“Creed” helmer Ryan Coogler is on board to direct the film. Kevin Feige is producing the movie, which stars Boseman as T’Challa, the prince of the African nation of Wakanda, who must take over the mantel after his father’s murder. Marvel unveiled the character in “Captain America: Civil War” before the standalone film hits theaters on Feb. 16, 2018.

Nyong’o’s exact character is unknown at this time.

Joe Robert Cole is co-penning the script with Coogler.

The Oscar winner was most recently lent her voice to “Star Wars: the Force Awakens” as Maz Kanata and “The Jungle Book” as Mother Wolf Raksha. She can be seen next in Disney’s “Queen of Katwe” opposite David Oyelowo and is also attached to star in DreamWorks’ “Intelligent Life.”

Photo and text from Variety

Critic's Notebook: On Kanye's 'Blue' Eyes, Lupita's Alien Lives and Allowing Black Artists to Be Free

Photo from the Hollywood Reporter

Good article about the policing of black artists' roles and fashion choices in The Hollywood Reporter. I too read the Vulture article mentioned and had a similar reaction (as I've often thought before). Read an excerpt below:

Kanye West stirred controversy by wearing light contacts to the Met Ball on Monday night, but we should stop policing black artists' aesthetic and artistic choices.

Judgement of black artists' aesthetic and career choices was also a theme in an April 27 Vulture article that took issue with the recent use of black actors to play CGI-cloaked aliens or to voice animated animals. Kyle Buchanan writes, rather paternalistically, that seeing black bodies is good for the culture. "Idris, Lupita, Paula, and Zoe have faces that matter. Let us see them," he concludes.

But what if they don’t want to be seen? What if they want to focus on their equally beautiful voices, as both Idris Elba and Lupita Nyong’o were able to do in the The Jungle Book? And why are these actors’ real brown faces more important or authentic than the nuance of their real voices? 

What's best for the culture is for these brilliant actors to stretch out their talents and practice their craft in any way they damn well desire. Nyong’o has taken to defending her choices recently. On NPR program All Things Considered, she was asked by host Neda Ulaby (not a black woman) if her recent voice and motion capture work was due to the lack of starring roles for women of color. N’yongo said no. "I think subconsciously I was excited by work that was not about my body. It wasn’t about my skin or my body or its economy, whether we’re talking about slavery or we’re talking about fashion," she said, referring to the red carpet and magazine fame that came from playing a raped slave in Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave. "12 Years a Slave is a lot about the economy of Patsey’s body. And then also the exposure the film gave me was a lot about my body."

She went on to elaborate on this stance yesterday in a beautiful essay in Lenny Letter, that seems to directly address the Vulture article: “I love the idea of people of color participating in mythical, magical stories, whether that’s as hero, villain, sage, or sorceress. Or all of the above!" Nyong'o wrote. "I think sometimes a singular catharsis can be found in genre storytelling — as I found when playing a thousand-year-old woman (Maz Kanata in Star Wars: The Force Awakens) and a wolf mother (Raksha in The Jungle Book). I’m able to be more engaged in roles such as those than I would be in playing 'the wife' when she is written with no motivation or singularity.”

Read the rest at:

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/critics-notebook-kanyes-blue-eyes-890727

Photo and text from The Hollywood Reporter

Kenzo Launches ‘The Jungle Book’ Clothing Collection

Photo from Variety

This is weird, but I'm kind of into it. However at Kenzo prices, I'm just going to have to be an admirer.

In honor of the April 2016 release of “The Jungle Book,” Parisian fashion house Kenzo has designed a limited-edition capsule collection that’s inspired by Disney’s live-action rendition of the classic children’s tale.

To pay homage to the story’s animated origins, the luxury clothing label’s creative directors, Carol Lim and Humberto Leon, sourced original drawings from the Disney archives’ late ’60s collection of “The Jungle Book” sketches to design the apparel.

Offering both men’s and women’s ready-to-wear pieces, the collection boasts vibrant jungle-esque prints and features designs based on classic “The Jungle Book” characters Mowgli, Baloo the bear, Bagheera the panther, King Louie the orangutan and more. To further commemorate its inaugural collaboration with Disney, Kenzo’s “The Jungle Book” collection will also feature sweaters and tees with the face of the story’s suave antagonist, Shere Khan the tiger — a nod to the brand’s signature tiger motif. Other pieces include silk shirts, dresses, jackets, trousers and shorts.

The collection launched April 1 at Kenzo brick-and-mortar locations and select department stores such as Bergdorf Goodman in NYC, Selfridges in London, Excelsior in Milan and the Corner in Berlin. Starting April 7, it’ll be available on Kenzo.com.

Photo from Variety

Photos and text from Variety

The Jungle Book cast pose with their animal counterparts for a stunning series of promo images

Photo from Comic Book Movie

No, you won't see her in the movie (or any of the other awesome actors), but I totally love the images.

Check out the rest at Comic Book Movie.com:

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/fantasy/the-jungle-book-cast-pose-with-their-animal-counterparts-for-a-stunning-a132350