Black Panther is so close, and yet so far. We got a banger of a trailer, complete with emover-sporting Michael B. Jordan and an unlikely yet perfect soundtrack cut from Run the Jewels. At San Diego Comic-Con later this month, Marvel will show out in full force, and there’s no doubt they’ll tantalize audiences in Hall H with some preview footage from the film. And to accompany that, Entertainment Weekly has run a new cover spread on Ryan Coogler’s upcoming film with new photos of the royal court ruling the Black Panther’s home nation of Wakanda. All this — for a movie that isn’t out until mid-February.

Yes, the next seven months are going to fly right by, but if they don’t, at least we’ve got some new stuff to stare at. The cover of the latest Entertainment Weekly is a lovely piece of work, featuring stars Chadwick Boseman, Jordan, and Lupita Nyong’o. Behold the new black royalty:

As the helpful character profiles in EW’s preview report states, Boseman takes the title role, the King and defender of fictitious African land Wakanda, a city-state secluded from the outside world. Jordan plays the villain, a challenger to the throne hoping to usurp the Black Panther’s reign. Nyong’o is one of the Panther’s most trusted lieutenants, a sort of spy for the crown. Get a closer look in the full spread:

Executive producer Nate Moore provided some quotes to go along with the photo spread, one of which caught my attention in particular. Moore compares the film to The Godfather and the James Bond films, comparing their elements of discord within a powerful family and espionage to the upcoming Marvel film. Moore’s writing a pretty big check with a Godfather name-drop — here’s hoping Coogler can back it up.

More From WDKS-FM