Now that Chadwick Boseman is Marvel’s Black Panther, it seems that it’s become a easier to get other actors to sign on to projects resting almost wholly on his soon-to-be-an-action-figure frame. It definitely didn’t hurt his latest project, as The Hollywood Reporter announces that Luke Evans, Teresa Palmer, and Alfred Molina have all signed on to appear in Message From The King, Boseman’s upcoming revenge thriller.
We’ve already learned that Boseman will star as a man who travels from Africa to Los Angeles to get revenge for his murdered sister and rescue his stepson. Boseman’s character is named Jacob King, which leads to the assumption that other titles considered for the film included Hail To The King, It’s Good To Be The King, and Something Something King Pun Violence. Evans will play a “Beverly Hills cosmetic dentist who provides services both legal and illegal and offers to help King find his sister,” perhaps providing comic relief by attacking thugs with a tongue depressor. (Maybe his character could be called Mr. Knight? King Takes Knight is still available.)
Molina takes on the role of a Hollywood producer who may know something about King’s stepson, so we’re guessing the villain. And Palmer will play “a mother who turns tricks to support both her drug habit and 6-year-old daughter,” because Hollywood is very good at creating well-rounded, original roles for women. The film is scheduled for a March shoot, and its budget of less than $10 million is likely equivalent to what the cost of craft services will be on the set of Black Panther.