Namor is definitely coming to the MCU soon, and we think we know where he’ll debut and who will be playing him. Way back in late 2020, it was reported that Narcos: Mexico star Tenoch Huerta had been hired to play the villain in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. It was quickly rumored that Huerta’s role was really Namor the Sub-Mariner, the king of Atlantis himself who fans have been wanting to see in the franchise forever.
All this time later, Huerta may have just subtly confirmed he actually is part of the production with his latest social media post. The 41-year-old Mexican star shared a photo on Instagram this weekend of Benito Juarez’s sculpture in San Juan, Puerto Rico. So what’s the significance of this pic? It’s believed that director Ryan Coogler and his team are currently shooting Black Panther 2 in the same area.
Even if we can take this as confirmation that he’s involved with the movie, it obviously doesn’t definitively link Huerta with the part of Namor, though. That said, the Sub-Mariner — one of Marvel’s oldest heroes, dating back to 1939 — is the sole character the actor’s been connected to, so it would only make sense. Huerta’s post certainly adds some fuel to the idea that the sequel will focus on a war between Wakanda and the lost kingdom of Atlantis.
Speaking of lost kingdoms, if Namor is joining the MCU, it looks like we’ll be having a battle of the sea kings over the next year. Following Black Panther 2 arriving later this year, DC’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom follows in March 2023, having recently been pushed back from its initial December release. General audiences have an established relationship with Jason Momoa’s Justice Leaguer, so we’ll have to see if they can warm up to Tenoch Huerta’s underwater monarch in the same way.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is due in theaters this November 11.