As things stand, we’re a little close to an answers to the question who is the Black Panther in Black Panther 2 Wakanda Forever, so here’s everything that we have to go on so far. We’ll take you through the latest on the casting of the role and what it could mean for the future of the MCU, but before we get into that we wanted to remember the work of the late Chadwick Boseman.
His passing is one of the saddest in recent years with such an incredible career and at the age of 43. His performances as T’Challa were faultless throughout his appearances in Captain America: Civil War, Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame and it will be impossible to replace him in any kind of traditional capacity.
AdvertisementHowever, that’s sort of what Marvel Studios has to do to keep the superhero as part of the MCU, which feels like an important thing to work towards to pass on the torch of inspiration. Whoever does take on the role will obviously have huge boots to fill, so it’s a crucial decision to get right and hopefully they can take the epic foundations that Chadwick Boseman built and do it credit.
Who is the Black Panther most likely to be
If you’re looking for the most likely person to play Black Panther in the second film, the simple answer is Letitia Wright as T’Challa’s tech wizard younger sister Shuri. This will require a lot of training to hone the more physical side of the character, but we think that’s doable with time, effort and a solid prep team around her.
AdvertisementApart from the fact that it makes sense as a replacement without being a direct replacement, the biggest hint comes from the comic books initially. When Doctor Doom leaves T’Challa in a coma in Volume 5, Shuri takes up his mantle and becomes the Queen of Wakanda and we’re expecting that to be the case here, but with a more permanent farewell to the late king.
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With no children that we know of, there doesn’t appear to be an heir to the thrown, so we’re assuming it’s going to be left to Shuri. She’s bound to reject the responsibility to begin with, but with other powers starting to encircle the Vibranium capital of the world then that will probably override her grief for her brother.
AdvertisementIn fact, this could essentially be the blueprint for the plot with Shuri wrestling with the weight of it all before there is no other option but to become the Black Panther and set everything right again. With her genius level intellect, she should be able to see off any trial by combat, which seems like a ridiculously barbaric way to decide a head of state and national hero, so hopefully she does away with that as soon as she comes to power.
The recent arrival of the latest trailer below has also all but confirmed that it will be a femal Black Panther that takes the fight on in Wakanda Forever. You can see the reveal towards the end of the video and it doesn’t take too much to spot a similar frame to Letitia Wright’s.
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You can also see additional details on the film in the run up to the release with the official Marvel Studios Twitter page at https://twitter.com/MarvelStudios.
Who are the other contenders for the Black Panther role
It doesn’t take too much creative thinking to come up with a few more options for who is Black Panther in the 2nd film, but none of them feel as rounded as Shuri. However, for completeness here are some other contenders and what our take is on the probability of them becoming a reality for the future of the MCU.
Firstly, and possibly the second most likely option, is for the lack of a king to trigger some form of trial by combat rite of passage for all eligible claimants. These include M’Baku (leader of the Mountain Tribe – played by Winston Duke) and the River Tribe Elder (played by the brilliant Isaach de Bankolé).
That may sound a little overly male oriented, but the reality is that historically it has always been father passes on his power to his son. However, if there is a Royal Rumble-style trial by combat and the women of Wakanda are included then you could add head of the Dora Milaje Okeye (Danai Gurira), T’Challa’s old flame Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), and obviously Shuri.
AdvertisementLooking at the list, we’d have to say that Shuri is still the front-runner, followed by Nakia and then Okeye, so there are a number of options for a new female hero to add to the ranks of the MCU. Another outside possibility is that we have a number of characters taking up the Black Panther mantle, a bit like a Wakandan “I’m Sparticus” situation.
There could also be a cousin or two waiting in the wings that might step into the fray, leaving Marvel Studios with a carte blanche to decide on who is going to be the new King of Wakanda and Heart Shaped Herb chomper. If it isn’t going to be Shuri, then the existing cast members from the first film would be the most logical approach. However, it’s possible that director Ryan Coogler and producer Kevin Feige want to shake things up and bring in a new name to become Black Panther, especially if they’ve found someone that is too good to be true. This would be a fairly big surprise and an even bigger risk, as it could alienate the existing fan base, but you never really know how these things are going to go.
On the matter of an heir to the throne, there is the possibility that T’Challa reunited with Nakia after the events of Endgame and had a child together. However, a baby Black Panther doesn’t really work, so even if this is the case it would probably lead to someone else taking on the responsibility until the baby grew up a whole lot more.
Finally, it was possible that there just won’t be a new Black Panther. This seems like an outside possibility, but it could be the direction that they take. The film’s title is all about the fictional nation state of Wakanda, so maybe the idea is that the entire country embodies the spirit of their fallen hero. That would at least let them move over to a more modern free election political setup. Although, if the British monarchy had turbo-powered armor and a plant that gave them superpowers then we’d probably still have royal rule here too.
We’ll update you with more details on the film as they get confirmed. You can also check out our movie news section to keep tabs on the latest upcoming film release dates, age rating and parents guide details, or visit the Marvel website at https://www.marvel.com/.
