Namor The Sub-Mariner Is Confirmed For Black Panther 2 At Long Last

All the way back in 2010's "Iron Man 2," eagle-eyed fans noticed a telling dot on a map. The yellow point seemed to mark the location of somewhere — or something — out in the middle of the ocean (via Reddit). From that moment on, fans let their imaginations fly on when they would possibly see the only character that dot could point to one person: Namor the Sub-Mariner. Fast forward nearly a decade, and audiences were treated to yet another tease in 2019's "Avengers: Endgame." Early in Act 1, Okoye (Danai Gurira) reports a disturbance in the middle of the ocean to Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). Natasha seems keen to pursue, while Okoye brushes it off and reassures her it's nothing.

Still, it took another two years before rumors began to rumble that the Atlantean warrior would debut in the "Black Panther" sequel. Back in January, The Direct reported Namor would appear after a casting call seemingly pointed to the character and his Atlantean community playing a prominent role in "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever." Thanks to Marvel Studios' presentation at San Diego Comic-Con 2022, fans got the confirmation they needed that not only is Namor appearing in the film, but we know who will be playing the highly-anticipated character.

In the beginning of July 2022, leaked concept art for Namor the Sub-Mariner hit the internet (via ComicBook). The artwork depicted some changes from the comic book character, adding inspirations from the Mayan and Aztec people and thus opening up the character for a more inclusive casting. Considering he bears a striking resemblance to the artwork, "The Forever Purge" and "Spectre" actor Tenoch Huerta responded to the leaks on Twitter. In the mood to have a little fun, he posted a photo of Mermaid Man from "SpongeBob SquarePants" with a Spanish-language caption that roughly translates to "Images of Tenoch have leaked."

The actor no longer needs to play coy because his role as Namor — and thus, his official public debut as an MCU actor — has finally been confirmed (via Twitter). He appeared both on stage during Marvel's SDCC 2022 presentation and in the first "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" trailer. In the sneak peek, he is seen watching his home burn as a child and then leading an army against Wakanda. On stage, he got an opportunity to speak to the crowd and took the opportunity to address his upbringing and his journey to this role. According to Static Media sister site /Film's Senior News Editor Jacob Hall, who reported from Hall H, the actor told the audience he is from "the hood," and Marvel's inclusion is the only reason he is there. He went on to say, "There are a lot of kids in their hoods, dreaming of being here." 

Fans have a lot to look forward to, as they have waited a long time to see Namor hit the screens, and Huerta has waited a long time for his opportunity to shine.