It seems director Ryan Coogler’s plan for Black Panther 2 was always going to center on grief and now news has emerged the initial script explored T’Challa’s distress after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Furthermore, the MCU director had always hoped to incorporate the Sub-Mariner as a villain.
Marvel Studios’ blockbuster entry for 2022, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is days away from its worldwide release so filmmakers are actively engaged in promoting the anticipated flick through press junkets. In one such interview with Inverse, Coogler addressed his original script which had Wakanda’s King dealing with his pain and handling the hurdles that arose from his five years of absence due to the blip.
“The tonal shift, I will say, was less of a shift than in [casting]. The tone was going to be similar. [T’Challa] was going to be grieving the loss of time, you know, coming back after being gone for five years. As a man with so much responsibility to so many, coming back after a forced five years absence, that’s what the film was tackling. He was grieving time he couldn’t get back. Grief was a big part of it. [Namor] was always the antagonist. There were other characters, for sure, that we considered including. Namor was always there.”
While Marvel decided to pass on the Black Panther mantle, the tone of the second installment remained the same, though it shows the technological nation grieving over T’Challa’s death and in the process paying tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman. In addition, Namor’s debut as an anti-hero and a ruler posing a threat to Wakanda was the cherry on top that seems to have made it a success among critics.
Unfortunately, T’Challa’s on-screen seems to be at an end, not unless Marvel decides to recast for Avengers: Secret Wars. Although the campaign to recast T’Challa lives on, MCU Chief Kevin Feige assured there were no such plans as it would be too soon to move on from Chadwick’s iteration.
Meanwhile, Black Panther 2 still sets up several opportunities to expand the franchise through spin-offs, with fans even hoping to see a Namor standalone project and a Midnight angels series centering on Okoye. However, a recent update from the producer Nate Moore suggests the plans have slowdown since prioritizing other shows like Riri Williams’ Ironheart series. But all hopes lie on the sequel’s box office success which is currently tracking a $175M-$200M domestic opening.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hits theaters on November 11.
