How did the Avengers: Infinity War trailer ruin an important Black Panther moment?

Avengers: Infinity War is undoubtedly the biggest event in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, its action-packed trailer undermined a critical moment in Black Panther.

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After inaugurating the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Iron Man, Marvel Studios has created history by bringing a variety of characters to the big screen. 10 years later, as the MCU is about to witness some radical changes in its fictional universe with Avengers: Infinity War, the production house is using every ounce of promotional material to create the maximum amount of buzz for the tent-pole film. However, that ended up undercutting one of the most pivotal moments of its latest hit release, Black Panther.

Spoiler alert: This article contains major spoilers for Black Panther.

The predominant question that Ryan Coogler kept imposing upon T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and the audience as well was: Is T’Challa worthy of the mantle of Black Panther & King of Wakanda? And T’Challa had to answer that not once, but twice, by partaking in gladiatorial matches and defeating the challenger for the throne.

As his fight against M’Baku (Winston Duke) was so early on in the film, it was obvious that he wouldn’t lose. However, when he faced off against Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), since Coogler decided to not only make T’Challa lose the battle but also kill him by the hands of his cousin, it strangely felt as inconsequential as the first one. I should’ve feared for his life, his loved ones and Wakanda’s fate under Killmonger’s jurisdiction, but I didn’t; and the reason lies in the Infinity War trailer.

As Avengers: Infinity War will witness the arrival of Thanos (Josh Brolin), its trailer featured every single superhero/super-heroine in the MCU duking it out against the Mad Titan, with T’Challa being one of them. But since the trailer debuted a full two months before Black Panther‘s release, every comic-book fan knew that he would make it through the events at Wakanda, well before they walked in to watch his solo film. While this shouldn’t have been a major issue in the era of constant updates and leaks, as Black Panther’s death was an essential aspect of the movie, the promise of his survival lessened the emotional pang that was palpable in Shuri (Letitia Wright), Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and Ramonda’s (Angela Bassett) eyes.

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What could’ve been done to make Black Panther’s death matter?

Considering how Marvel produces nearly three movies per year, it follows the process of putting out teasers and TV spots, thereby giving away details about which characters will come out unscathed to join the rest of the posse. Additionally, as Marvel movies’ inclination towards humor has created the new norm of reduced stakes, their third acts are usually devoid of any tension or anticipation. However, as Black Panther seemed to have the right tone and felt fairly self-contained, Marvel should’ve highlighted these aspects and made some slight alterations to make T’Challa’s momentary death count.

As mentioned before, this is no secret that Marvel wants to make Avengers: Infinity War the biggest cinematic event of the decade. And seeing how it’s supposed to release in April, they had to release the trailer a few months earlier; something that Coogler had no control over.

If Coogler knew about Marvel’s schedule, he could’ve made some structural changes (as suggested by The Cosmonaut Variety Hour) and used Erik to kill T’Challa much earlier in the movie. In doing so, his death wouldn’t been wasted in a cheap scare/twist that won’t have any large scale repercussions. Instead, it would’ve generated intrigue among viewers about how T’Challa is going to start from scratch and regain the mantle of Black Panther before featuring in Infinity War. In addition to that, it would’ve given more screen-time to Jordan’s Killmonger as the tyrannical ruler of Wakanda, while creating the urgency for T’Challa’s return.

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While that would’ve required an entire script overhaul, Marvel could’ve opted for the comparatively easier route and omitted T’Challa from the Infinity War trailer. So, even if he remained dead for 10 minutes of Black Panther‘s run-time, his absence from the Avengers trailer would’ve made that the scariest 10 minutes for Marvel fans. And just to elevate the fear factor, Marvel could’ve pulled a bluff by painting Black Panther’s suit with a little gold for the Infinity War trailer. That would’ve led fans to believe that T’Challa is actually dead & they had seen Killmonger in Avengers 3, thereby making the twist and his eventual return much more effective.

Black Panther is currently in theaters nationwide.

How do you think Marvel should make a character’s death matter? Let me know in the comments.