Commenting that "[i]t's a blessing for African Americans and minorities to have a superhero they can identify with," Hounsou will lend his voice to the superhero, who first appeared as a supporting character for Marvel's Fantastic Four in the mid-60s, as he makes his prime-time debut in next year's BET series, written and produced by former BET President Reginald Hudlin. Marvel Animation President Eric Rollman is clearly happy about the get:

The Black Panther" is Marvel's entrée into prime-time animation, and Djimon raises the bar for all involved as we bring the best in the animation business together to execute that vision.

Of course, despite the show being adapted from the comic book, by the time the animated series makes its debut, it'll bear little resemblance to its source: Marvel are relaunching the Black Panther comic book with an all-new female Panther replacing the character who's held the title for the last 22 years.

Hounsou to voice 'Black Panther' [Variety]

For those unfamiliar with the Black Panther, the character was the first black superhero in mainstream American comics, created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby during their historic Fantastic Four run. The king of a fictitious African country of Wakanda, a technologically-advanced nation hidden from Western civilization, T'Challa came to America to save his homeland from American Imperialists, fight crime and teach inner-city kids to read. During his 42-year history, he's belonged to the Avengers, led the Fantastic Four and married the X-Men's Storm, as well as proven himself to be one of the smartest characters in Marvel's universe and just generally bad-ass.

The new television show - to be adapted from the first six issues of Marvel's current Black Panther series, coincidentally (or not, as the case may be) written by BET's President of Entertainment, Reginald Hudlin - is still in production for a planned early 2009 airdate, but a specially-produced preview will be shown at the con during BET's Saturday panel, much to the delight of fanboys in attendance.

The Black Panther Sneak Peek at Comic-Con [SuperHero Hype]