The Jungle Book (franchise) as Baloo, Ben Kingsley as Bagheera, Idris Elba as Shere Khan, Scarlett Johansson as Kaa, Lupita Nyong'o as Raksha, Giancarlo Esposito as Akela, and Christopher Walken as King Louie. The film was released on April 15, 2016 to critical acclaim. After a fierce tiger threatens his life, Mowgli, an orphan boy raised by wolves, leaves his jungle home and, guided by a stern panther and a free-spirited bear, sets out on a journey of self-discovery. Following the film's early financial and critical successes, the studio has begun work on a sequel film. Favreau is reported to return as director, while
Black Panther (comics) own feature in the omnibus title "Jungle Tales", from Marvel's 1950s predecessor, Atlas Comics; and the Dell Comics Western character Lobo, the first black person to star in his own comic book. Previous non-caricatured black supporting characters in comics include U.S. Army infantry private Gabriel Jones of "Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos". In a guest appearance in "Fantastic Four" #119 (Feb. 1972), the Black Panther briefly tried using the name Black Leopard to avoid connotations with the Party, but the new name did not last. The character's name was changed back to Black Panther in "Avengers" #105, with T'Challa