I was surprised to read some of the reactions to Comic-Con’s Lost panel, specifically in regards to the “In Memoriam” part of it, and how quickly people had forgotten Mr. Eko, played by Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje. How could you possibly forget Eko, whose death was the only one that came out of nowhere, with no foreshadowing or real closure for the character? Unfortunately, it was a move prompted so Akinnuoye-Agbaje could continue his acting career beyond Lost. How quickly we forget. Of course, forgetting has been pretty easy, considering how few on-screen roles Akinnouye-Agbaje has had since his Lost stint ended.

Hopefully Eko’s death will not be in vain, especially if current talks go well between the actor and Marvel Comics, as reported by MTV’s Splash Page. Akinnouye-Agbaje revealed that he’s been talking to the studio about the long-delayed Black Panther adaptation. The actor thinks the time is right for the Black Panther to find his way to the screen: “We’ve got Obama, now we need something on screen to represent, so… Panther, man.”

The Black Panther was originally a more obscure member of the Marvel Comics Universe. Prince T’challa, the ruler of a small (fictional) African nation, used a special herb to gain special powers to protect his country. As the character has grown in recent years, T’challa has filled in for the Fantastic Four, and is a card holding member of the Avengers. Hmmm, aren’t there plans for an Avengers film on the horizon? Maybe Akinnouye-Agbaje is right and it is the perfect time to make a Black Panther film happen.

The actor admits that he’s only in early talks and is hoping the Powers That Be will see his performance in the upcoming G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra and see the potential of putting him in the role. Here’s hoping his part of G.I. Joe is better than what we’ve seen in the trailers. I can certainly see Akinnouye-Agbaje playing the part of Black Panther. In fact, he would probably be my leading choice just based on physical appearance. Can you think of anyone who might make a better choice?

Check out the video of MTV’s interview with Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje below: