Sean 'Puff Daddy' Combs Says 'Black Panther' Was "Cruel Experiment"

When it came out earlier this year, Marvel’s blockbuster Black Panther was widely regarded as a movie industry game-changer as well as an exceptional film. Rap legend Sean ‘Puff Daddy’ Combs, however, begs to differ.

Describing Black Panther as a “cruel experiment”, the 48 year old star believes that it was just a token effort at inclusion, rather than the full-blown revolution it ought to have been.

“Black Panther was a cruel experiment, because we live in 2018, and it's the first time that the film industry gave us a fair playing field on a worldwide blockbuster, and the hundreds of millions it takes to make it,” Combs told Variety this week.

He also believes that its huge box office success shows that black people in the creative industries can “over-deliver” when afforded the correct resources.

“You can't do anything without that money, without resources,” Combs explained. “But when we do get the resources, we over-deliver. When Adidas invests in Kanye and it's done properly, you have the right results.”

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“When Live Nation invests in artists and puts them in arenas the same way U2 would be, you have the right results. Black Panther, Black-ish, fashion; it's all about access. If you're blocked out of the resources, you can't compete. And that's my whole thing – to be able to come and compete.”

Directed by Ryan Coogler, Black Panther starred Chadwick Boseman in the lead role alongside Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o and Letitia Wright, and took over $1.3 billion worldwide, becoming by far the highest-grossing film to be made by a black director.

Marvel boss Kevin Feige has asserted confidence that Black Panther will be recognised at next year’s Oscars – not very usual for superhero blockbusters. “I think there are a lot of amazing artists that helped to make that movie… it would be wonderful if they could be recognised.”

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