The new “Black Panther” is more than a superhero movie. The film is a powerful social statement because of its portrayal of its black protagonist and its majoritively black cast. It’s no secret mainstream media often falters in its portrayal of the black community.

Of all 30,000 characters of the top 700 grossing films from 2007 to 2014, excluding 2011, only 12.5 percent of them were black, according to a 2015 study conducted by the University of Southern California. The study also showed that only 17 of the top movies in 2014 featured non-white leads or co-lead actors.

One of the main reasons for Hollywood’s lack of diversity may be because of white people not feeling as if movies with predominantly black casts are intended for them.

During a study headed by Andrew Weaver, Department of Telecommunication associate professor at Indiana University, participants were shown altered cast lists for fictional movies then asked questions about the participant’s movie-going habits, racial attitudes and desire to watch each movie.

He found the higher percentage of black characters on the cast lists, the less likely white participants would watch the movies.

Weaver found this response didn’t stem from racial attitudes, but rather a feeling that movies with majoritively black casts usually aren’t made for white audiences.

“This movie is not for me,” said Weaver when describing the most common response of white participants who were less willing to watch movies featuring a high percentage of black cast members.

“If more mainstream movies cast minorities, if multiracial casts became the norm and movies were marketed to all demographics, the stigma could fade away,” said Weaver. “Thus, racial statistics in this area could shift.”

This is undoubtedly true; movies with a majoritevly non-white cast can do extremely well in the box office, just like any other movie. “Black Panther” had an amazing opening weekend and wasn’t marketed any differently from Marvel’s other superhero movies. During “Black Panther’s” opening weekend, it made over $240 million domestically, making it the fifth best opening of all time, according to a Feb. 19 Rotten Tomatoes article.

When movies are marketed to all demographics, like “Black Panther”, Hollywood can be confident it can have a majoritively non-white cast and still do well in the box office, therefore shouldn’t be afraid to push toward having more diverse casting in movies.

“The kids, that’s why you do it,” said Black Panther Chad Boseman during a Feb. 16 ESPN entertainment interview. “A superhero this way, it is a new concept; it’s the whole cast.”

Even though it seems most children aren’t aiming to be the next hero of Wakanda, they are still able to see someone like them being depicted as powerful, confident and heroic.

“It gives younger African-American children the courage to be who they are in a society dominated by white representation,” said Samantha Vincent, freshman communicative disorders major. “They need to be able to see people who look like them on screen.”

With great influence comes great responsibility. The mainstream media needs to continue pushing toward more diverse casts and respectful representations of non-white groups.