101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far)

Ryan Coogler and Joe Robert Cole knew the significance of the universe they were creating, with a Black superhero and a futuristic African utopia, untouched by colonial rule, that entered the words “Wakanda Forever” in the lexicon. But they started from an intimately personal perspective. “We worked from themes and philosophical questions as our base,” Ryan Coogler told Written By. “The big one was: ‘Am I my brother’s keeper? If I’m not related to you, am I responsible for you? Do I, as a Wakandan, have to worry about the rest of the world? And at what point do I stop worrying?’ It was like, if we can have characters who all have different answers to those questions, that will drive our story. That was how we talked about all the characters in the film.”

READ: Marvel’s marvels Ryan Coogler & Joe Robert Cole liberate Black Panther.