THERE’S a new “Black Panther” in town, but this one is not much given to serving humanity, improving racial representation or hollering “Wakanda Forever” whenever his onesie gets creased.

La Pantera Negra, it turns out, is the ruthless, Beatles-loving Mexican cartel kingpin in “Gringo,” a comedy crime caper starring David Oyelowo, Joel Edgerton, Charlize Theron and Sharlto Copley.

“People were saying, ‘Are you worried that you called the villain Black Panther?’ Seriously, we made the movie like two years ago and I was like, ‘Um, no,’” laughs Copley, 44.

“And even if we were, it’s still funny to me. I mean, what? Do we not laugh at anything anymore?”

“Gringo” – part comedy, part white-knuckle actioner – follows businessman Harold Soyinka (Oyelowo) as he finds himself crossing the line from law-abiding citizen to wanted criminal.

The mild-mannered pharmaceutical executive takes a business trip from Chicago to Mexico with his cutthroat bosses Richard (Edgerton) and Elaine, played by a deliciously Cruella de Vil-esque Theron. 

There are numerous twists and turns along the way to Harold sounding the alarm he has been abducted – and coming face-to-face with the Black Panther.

Rather than pay a US$5 million (RM20 million) ransom, Richard dispatches his mercenary-turned-humanitarian brother Mitch, played by Copley, to extract Harold.

“It seemed to me to be a great set-up for a comedic character – a guy who is a former mercenary and is now trying to turn his life around in Haiti by helping people in need,” Copley said.

“Then he gets drawn into this whole mess, kind of like an alcoholic going back into a bar.”

“Gringo” is helmed by Edgerton’s brother Nash, who made his feature-length directorial debut in 2008 with the acclaimed Australian thriller “The Square.”

“Gringo” hit US theaters on Friday. – AFP, March 10, 2018.