Andy Serkis and Martin Freeman, who were rumored to be part of the cast of the Ryan Coogler-directed Black Panther for Disney and Marvel Studios, were confirmed today production has gotten underway. The new film in Marvel’s superhero universe stars Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Forest Whittaker and Angela Bassett and will be released February 16, 2018.

Serkis is one of the most under-rated actors around, often behind motion-capture tech like he was for Chernin Entertainment/Fox’s Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes. He is returning for War For The Planet Of The Apes. Freeman was in the Hobbit trilogy, and audiences will know him also from Captain America: Civil War. He will reprise his role as Everett K. Ross.

Based on the Marvel comic that first appeared in Fantastic Four Vol. 1 published in 1966, Black Panther is part of Marvel’s plan to introduce new Superheroes over the course of nine films in four years.