It appears that Andy Serkis and Martin Freeman will soon be co-stars in another film franchise. Rumors that both actors will be part of the "Black Panther" cast were finally confirmed during an announcement made earlier last week.

According to Empire Online, Andy Serkis ("13 Going on 30," "The Lord of The Rings" trilogy) and Martin Freeman ("Sherlock," "The Hobbit") have now joined the cast of Marvel's upcoming superhero film "Black Panther." Both Serkis and Freeman will reprise their previous roles.

Serkis portrayed Ulysses Klaue, a "black-market arms dealer, smuggler, and gangster" in "Avengers: Age of Ultron." Meanwhile, Freeman portrayed Everett K. Ross, "a member of the Joint Counter Terrorism Center" in "Captain America: Civil War."

The upcoming film will feature T'Challa (portrayed by Chadwick Boseman, "The Express," "Gods of Egypt") who, after the events of Captain America: Civil War, returns home to the isolated, technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda to take his place as King. However, when an old enemy reappears on the radar, T'Challa's mettle as King and Black Panther is tested when he is drawn into a conflict that puts the entire fate of Wakanda and the world at risk."

"Black Panther" will be directed by Ryan Coogler ("Fruitvale Station," "The Day the Series Stopped"), produced by Kevin Feige ("Captain America: The First Avenger," "Thor: The Dark World"). Both Coogler and Joe Robert Cole ("Amber Lake," "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story") worked on the script for "Black Panther."

The film is slated for a February 16, 2018 release date, per Deadline. Marvel's "Black Panther" is part of a plan "to introduce new Superheroes over the course of nine films in four years." The upcoming film's cast also includes Michael B. Jordan ("Chronicle," "Fantastic Four") as Erik Killmonger, Lupita Nyong'o as Nakia ("12 Years a Slave"), Danai Gurira as Okoye ("The Walking Dead"), Angela Bassett as Ramonda, ("What's Love Got to Do with It"), and Forest Whitaker as Zuri ("Panic Room").