[dropcap]A[/dropcap]fter the major success of Black Panther in 2018 fans have been eagerly waiting for the sequel to the Marvel hit film. While the team had already been working on a script and was set to start shooting early in 2021 the cast and the world was struck with the sad news of the main actor Chadwick Boseman’s passing in August last year. Predictably, the questions surrounding the sequel have been arising. What could a sequel look like without the main character, King T’Challa/Black Panther?
Co-star Lupita Nyong’o in a recent interview said the film would be reshaped to honour Boseman. While no details on which way the film would go have been revealed, it has been confirmed director Ryan Coogler would reimagine the focus and progress without the character of T’Challa, while keeping his spirit and learnings alive in the film.
King T’Challa will not be recast
How Black Panther 2 will unfold is a mystery. What we do know is that the team is set to start shooting the sequel this summer with a release of the film scheduled for July 2022. Writer-director Ryan Coogler has confirmed that Boseman would not be recreated using CGI and no new actor would be cast for the role of King T’Challa/Black Panther. It is still unclear which direction the story will take. Will his character be absent, or will he have died in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)? Either way, the story has been reshaped by Coogler to respect the late star, as Nyong’o has revealed in a recent interview. Boseman’s co-star and Academy Award winner Nyong’o is one of the top 30 talented black Hollywood actresses and will be reprising her role as Nakia in Black Panther 2.
Will someone fill Boseman’s shoes?
With no new actor to fill the role of King T’Challa one question rises above all: what will Black Panther 2 look like without Black Panther? Will the torch be passed on to another character? Fans have been assuming Shuri, T’Challa’s half-sister might be the one to take on the job. Looking at the comic series this assumption does not seem too far off, given that Shuri does become Black Panther in the comics at some point. While this has not been confirmed, the film is supposed to focus more on the cast as a whole and Wakanda as a larger place. Many of the previous cast are said to reprise their roles, among them Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Letitia Wright as Shuri as well as Martin Freeman as CIA Agent Everett Ross.
Black Panther in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Black Panther 2 takes place in the world after Endgame – the Avengers hit film released in 2019 which saw many Marvel heroes come together, Black Panther among them. He made his first appearance in the MCU in Captain America: Civil War before the release of his own first film in 2018. Black Panther was a big success and is the highest-grossing film by a Black director (Ryan Coogler). It is unclear what place Wakanda will have in the MCU moving forward. Black Panther has played roles in both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, two of the top five highest-grossing films of all time.
The Avengers are widely popular worldwide with merchandise, games and spinoffs abound. In 2020 a new Marvel’s Avengers video game by Crystal Dynamics was released to bring the superhero action to consoles and PC. Even players of the popular video game Fortnite have come to enjoy playing the battle royale with their favourite Marvel characters. The superheroes have even found their place in the world of casino games. Lots of online casinos offer a wide variety of slots and games to be played online using some of the best and latest online casino bonuses to dive straight into the games with free spins and bonuses. A favourite is the Avengers Online Slot by Playtech which brings the beloved heroes onto the reels to easily be played online. However, it is yet to be seen which role Black Panther will continue to take within the MCU.
The team is getting ready to start shooting Black Panther 2 this summer. While it is now known that Coogler is reshaping the story, fans will have to wait until its release in July 2022 to find out how the legacy of Black Panther will continue.
