France’s defence minister, Sebastien Lecornu, has condemned Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. He publicly condemned its portrayal of its military force in Africa.
He states:
I strongly condemn this false and misleading representation of our Armed Forces. I think of and pay tribute to the 58 French soldiers who died defending Mali at its request against Islamist terrorist groups,” Sébastien Lecornu said on his Twitter account on Sunday
In the sequel to the first Black Panther, Wakanda is portrayed as an independent African nation resisting colonization. Wakanda Forever is reported to be a tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman. However, Lecornu’s condemnation was in reaction to a tweet made by French journalist Jean Bexon, on February 11, where he pointed out the similarity between the military uniforms worn by the villainous mercenaries and those of France’s army in the 1991 Gulf War.
Bexon states:
In the latest American Marvel production (Black Panther Wakanda Forever), the evil French mercenaries operating in Mali are dressed as Operation Barkhane soldiers,
France however considers the storyline sensitive as its military soldiers in 2022 left Mali and were replaced by Russia’s Wagner mercenary group at the request of that African country’s transitional government. The arrival of the mercenaries in Mali is seen as Russia attempting to outwit the Americans in Africa.
Hence, in the movie, Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, Lupita Nyong’o and Danai Gurira return to defend their grieving nation from a new threat.
What do you think about the portrayal of Wakanda in the movies? Feel free to share your thoughts about this in the comment section.
