'Black Panther' movie still needs a director as Ava DuVernay passes on project

LOS ANGELES, July 4 (UPI) -- Ava DuVernay says she met with Marvel executives about directing a Black Panther superhero movie, but she ultimately decided to pass on the project.

"I'm not signing on to direct Black Panther," DuVernay told Essence magazine. "I think I'll just say we had different ideas about what the story would be. Marvel has a certain way of doing things and I think they're fantastic and a lot of people love what they do. I loved that they reached out to me."

42 and Get On Up star Chadwick Boseman is to play the role of T'Challa, the ruler of the fictional nation of Wakanda and the first black superhero to appear in a mainstream, comic-book franchise in the 1960s.

"I loved meeting Chadwick and writers and all the Marvel execs," said DuVernay. "In the end, it comes down to story and perspective. And we just didn't see eye to eye. Better for me to realize that now than cite creative differences later."

DuVernay's civil-rights drama Selma was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar this year.