Could Bridgerton Star Regé-Jean Page Be the Next Black Panther?

After news of Regé-Jean Page's departure from Bridgerton, speculations of the actor's next big-ticket project are now ablaze. In fact, rumor has it,  the British star could be starring in the next Black Panther movie.

According to The Direct, whispers about Regé-Jean being considered to act in the Marvel superhero film have been around since January this year. An insider tip was posted as a blind item on Crazy Days and Nights, a blog allegedly run by a Hollywood entertainment lawyer with a track record of "fairly reliable" casting scoop.

The post reads, "Which foreign born breakout star of that period streaming show is the early frontrunner to play this Marvel superhero? It will be an entirely new alter ego character not the one portrayed by the recently deceased actor." Eventually, the blog revealed that it was indeed referring to Regé-Jean Page and the role of T'Challa in Black Panther, which was originally played by the late Chadwick Boseman.

Before we get too excited, note that Marvel's CCO Kevin Feige has confirmed that T'Challa will neither be recast nor will he appear in the films as CGI. Instead, the sequel will focus on exploring other characters and the different subcultures in Wakanda. So if Regé-Jean Page will be appearing in Black Panther 2, he will be playing a new role or an existing character in the comics. And if there's any film worth turning down a $50,000 per episode Bridgerton paycheck for, it's definitely a seat in the iconic and billion-dollar-grossing Marvel superhero film.

Further fueling this possibility is a recent article on the Hollywood Reporter, which states that sources have told the publication that the British actor is "laser focused on his burgeoning film career." His long line of upcoming projects are only proof of this, some of which being The Gray Man on Netflix (alongside Captain America Chris Evans, no less) this year and Dungeons and Dragons slated to premiere in 2022.

This story originally appeared on Preview.ph. Minor edits have been made by the Esquiremag.ph editors.