Fans have been waiting to get a follow-up to Black Panther since the film’s immense success in 2018. But that eager anticipation turned to heartbreak in the summer of 2020, once the movie’s lead hero, Chadwick Boseman, passed away after a private battle with cancer. His loss sent shockwaves among fans, fellow actors, and the entertainment industry as a whole.
In addition to grieving the loss of a real-life and on-screen hero, some also wondered what could become of this revolutionary role Boseman attracted to life? The Black Panther sequel was already announced in 2019, and weeks after Boseman’s departure, Marvel has confirmed that the show will go on in a way that honors the late actor’s legacy.
Here’s what we know about the Black Panther sequel so far.
Black Panther 2 release date: When is Black Panther: Wakanda Forever released?
Before the untimely departure of Boseman, the sequel was set for release on May 6, 2022but there has, understandably, been a slight delay to July 8, 2022.
filming will now start on the sequel in Atlanta in July 2021 for upwards of six months. That has been reported before the release date delay, so it’s unclear if that is still the situation.
There are now four Marvel movies intended for release in 2022 with Black Panther 2 joined by Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (March 25), Thor: Love and Thunder (May 6), and Captain Marvel 2, officially titled The Marvels (November 11).
Casting conundrum
Before Boseman’s passing, the sequel seemed to be assembling a recognizable set. Director Ryan Coogler, who additionally co-wrote the first film’s screenplay, was returning. Observers were imagining most of the original cast would return, with Martin Freeman, that plays CIA agent Everett Ross, and Danai Gurira, that performs Okoye, head of the Dora Milaje, Wakanda’s all-female particular powers, both confirming their return. The Hollywood Reporter has suggested that Narcos: Mexico celebrity Tenoch Huerta may combine the cast.
Needless to say, the sequel cast will be contingent on the script — when it happens, which characters are spotlighted, and more. News will surely trickle out as the filming schedule gets closer. But Feige stated the second movie would continue to explore the characters introduced in the first, so expect to see familiar faces.
There were several rumors about the movie’s possible villains. Some buzzed that Michael B. Jordan would somehow reunite as Erik Killmonger, though that might require some doing, considering what happened to him in the first film. And We Got This Covered reported that Marvel Comics standby Namor the Sub-Mariner would show up and attempt to take over Wakanda. Namor is an underwater-dwelling mutant who is half-human, half-Atlantean (such as Aquaman, but from Marvel).
Coogler told Yahoo Movies he had attended in another Panther villain, Kraven the Hunter, but it sounds as if the Sony series of movies has strategies for Kraven, likely in a Spider-Man movie.
“I have always loved Kraven the Hunter in virtually every iteration,” Coogler explained. “So there was a second –‘Could I catch Kraven?’ — and they had been Noah, you don’t possess Kraven.’ He had been one where I thought oh, man.’ However, I don’t even know if he’d have been employed in the film we ended up with, this was the early days.”
Black Panther 2 plot: What’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever about?
Coogler had formerly said that he wished to explore what T’Challa would be like developing his role as a king, especially given how different the personality is from the MCU out of his comic book source.
He explained: “I’d be very interested to see, you know, what kind of king he is with experience and the way that impacts his performance in the stories.”
We know for certain that the function of T’Challa will not be recast, the attention of the sequel will have had to change and all we officially know is that it is going to continue to explore the world of Wakanda.
Kevin Feige had hinted he wished to research more of Wakandan background in the sequel, which might be a path to go down if they wanted to make it a prequel instead.
“Towards the end of the movie, T’Challa takes the herb and experiences his father, where he’s like,’ Hey, guy. We have sort of screwed up, and I want to change it,” he told Entertainment Weekly
“There is that moment at which all the ancestors come behind T’Chaka. We’d joke and go,’ I wish to see… what is their story? What is that story? Who had been Bashenga, the first king of Wakanda? Who’s that next to the left, supporting T’Chaka? What was their story at Wakanda in 1938? That might be cool’.
“Everything starts as talks like that. The more viewers want to see these tales, the more chances we have to explore unique time and places.”
