Who could be Chadwick Boseman’s successor as Black Panther in Wakanda Forever?
The trailer for the upcoming ‘Wakanda Forever’ and leaked merchandise point to one probable replacement for Chadwick Boseman to wear the Black Panther suit.
The next installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe ‘Black Panther’ franchise ‘Wakanda Forever’ is set to hit cinemas 11 November 2022. After the tragic death of the movie’s star Chadwick Boseman there have been many rumors about who would don the superhero’s signature Black Panther suit.
A leak of merchandise for the upcoming ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ along with the release of a new longer version of the movie’s trailer have settled doubts about who that will be. It appears the Marvel Studios is taking a page out of the Black Panther comic book’s lore for T’Challa’s successor.
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The new Black Panther for ‘Wakanda Forever’
After Boseman died of colon cancer unexpectedly in August 2020 at the age of 43, Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige and Black Panther director Ryan Coogler decided not to recast the role with a different actor. “It just felt like it was much too soon to recast,” Feige told Empire.
“Stan Lee always said that Marvel represents the world outside your window. And we had talked about how, as extraordinary and fantastical as our characters and stories are, there’s a relatable and human element to everything we do. The world is still processing the loss of Chad. And Ryan poured that into the story.”
Rumors had been stirring of contenders to take up the mantle of the Black Panther including Okoye, played by Danai Gurira, leader of the Dora Milaje, Wakandan War Dog and T’Challa’s ex-lover Nakia, played by Lupita Nyong’o, as well as T’Challa’s tech genius sister Shuri, played by Letitia Wright.
Leaked merchandise and trailer point to Shuri
A leaked photo of two new Lego sets based on the next installment in the franchise showed Shuri in the Black Panther suit. The ‘Wakanda Forever’ trailer released at Comic-con 2022 gave fans a glimpse of the silhouette of T’Challa’s successor, the longer version released settled any doubts that it would be a woman.
Although the person behind the mask isn’t revealed, from the aspect of the new suited-up Black Panther and the central position Shuri has in promotional material make it a pretty safe bet that the princess and inventor will take over for her deceased brother.
This would be the comic book-accurate approach as Shuri has stepped up as the Black Panther on previous occasions when her brother was in a coma and again when he went missing. For now, however, fans will have to wait for final confirmation, as Shuri isn’t the only person to have held the Black Panther mantle in Marvel’s comics.