Tenoch Huerta, the Mexican actor who prevails in ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’

As with its heroes, Marvel Studios doesn’t neglect the backstories and motivations of its antagonists. And it could be said that every time he achieves better results, as with the recent participation of Christian Bale in Thor: Love and Thunder.

This time, all eyes will be on Mexico, who has found a worthy representative in Tenoch Huerta, winner of the Ariel award for best actorand now, under the direction of Ryan Coogler, finds world stardom as Namor in Black Panther: Wakanda Foreverreleased this November 10.

Although the tape is a 2018 direct-to-production sequel (with Chadwick Boseman) and Wakanda is still the center of the plot, Coogler spends enough time building up the origin of Namor, the ‘loveless boy’ who grows up to rule an underwater kingdom that seeks to remain hidden from the threats of the outside world.even if it leads him to face the kingdom of the Black Panther.

Huerta, a Marvel fan too, he knows that becoming the enemy of such a beloved nation will not exactly make him popular. “Many people identify with Wakanda and now I must be the subject that puts him under threat”, he said between laughs during the virtual press conference of the tape in which Diario EL UNIVERSO participated. “I think Ryan found a way to make Namor human, to justify why someone would do that kind of thing. It doesn’t mean it’s right or wrong or if it’s right, but it’s explained, it’s a reason”, advanced the 41-year-old actor.

“That balance is beautiful, those layers in a character. It’s fantastic, it doesn’t always happen in superhero movies and it’s fascinating.“, said.

In the comics, Namor first appeared in 1939’s Marvel Comics #1, becoming one of his oldest characters, acting as both a hero and a villain for years to follow. “In Wakanda, Namor represents Talokan, a hidden underwater civilization that is our reimagined version of the kingdom of Atlantis.”commented the director of the film.

The creation of Talokan

When Talokan began to take shape, Coogler and the film crew wanted to make sure that the reinvention of the comic book kingdom of Atlantis was grounded. “Just as we made Wakanda felt like a real place, we realized right away that we needed to build a story for TalokanCoogler explained.

The kingdom of Namor then appears as an underwater civilization, descendant of an ancient Mayan community, hidden in the depths of the ocean. Inspired by the culture of ancient Mesoamericathe filmmakers worked in collaboration with consultants to every creative decision in the production, costume design and the telling of its story.

So it was decided that the capital should be built primarily of stone which was then clad in mayan architecture, colors and iconographyas a tribute to a civilization that is still present but also with a classic touch. Hannah Bleacher led production design.

Huerta believes, as a Mexican, that this work can inspire your compatriots to value their indigenous roots more. “Look in the mirror and trust that the reflection is fine. We’ve been taught to be ashamed of who we are, but it’s time to say, ‘yes, this is who I am and I’ve never had anything wrong with me.’ The error was in the eyes of those who looked at us and who judged us. And most of the time, we’ve been ourselves”.