Claim: Black Panther appeared before Luke Cage.

The Black Panther -LRB- T'Challa -RRB- is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics . Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller and co-plotter Jack Kirby , he first appeared in Fantastic Four # 52 -LRB- July 1966 -RRB- . He is the first black superhero in mainstream American comics , debuting years before such early African-American superheroes as Marvel Comics ' the Falcon -LRB- 1969 -RRB- and Luke Cage -LRB- 1972 -RRB- , and DC Comics ' Green Lantern John Stewart -LRB- 1971 -RRB- and Black Lightning -LRB- 1977 -RRB- . The character is usually depicted as the king and protector of Wakanda , a fictional African nation . Chadwick Boseman portrays the Black Panther in Captain America : Civil War -LRB- 2016 -RRB- and is set to return in Black Panther -LRB- 2018 -RRB- , both set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe .