The superpowered mute king of the Inhumans, Black Bolt (Anson Mount), will use his own alien kind of sign language in Marvel’s Inhumans on ABC — because using his actual voice could destroy the world.
Showrunner Scott Buck told Entertainment Weekly that though Black Bolt can’t speak due to his powers, he still manages to communicate through a certain kind of sign language. But because the kingdom of the Inhumans is on the Moon, you won’t see Black Bolt using traditional human sign language.
“Because he’s not from Earth, he wouldn’t know American Sign Language,” actor Anson Mount explained, “so I’m making my own sign system.”
Though Black Bolt’s voice does have a great deal of strength associated with it — as its sonic waves can easily rip apart matter at the atomic level — that power also comes with the burden of “potential catastrophe” looming over the king, which might explain his grave expression in the first cast photo. “He literally has to meditate an hour every night before going to bed so he doesn’t talk in his sleep,” Mount explained. Because if he didn’t, the full extent of his scream could destroy an entire planet.
The first two episodes of Inhumans will premiere in IMAX on September 1, 2017. The rest of the show will air on ABC this fall.
