Every single sign is pointing towards Letitia Wright’s Shuri taking over the mantle in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but it still can’t be definitively ruled out that the sequel is going to pull the rug from right under us.
Based on the trailers, promos, and TV spots, it’s nailed-on that the next incumbent of the iconic costume is going to be female, but there’s a hardy band of fans out there keeping their fingers crossed that Lupita Nyong’o’s Nakia, Danai Gurira’s Okoye, or even Michaela Coel’s Aneka could be cemented as the nation’s new protector by the time the credits roll.
That means we can unequivocally take Winston Duke’s hulking M’Baku out of the equation, then, with the actor explaining to Entertainment Tonight why his character wouldn’t even be interested in assuming the Black Panther guise anyway.
“My character doesn’t pray to Bast. So, I don’t know if that’s a reality, but seeing him come into his own right as a full supporter, and practice of faith of Hanuman, would be incredible. Seeing him super-powered and fully evolved would be incredible.”
There was some chatter a while back that M’Baku could be one of the potential candidates to step in for T’Challa in Wakanda Forever, but it sounds as though the leader of the Jabari tribe is more than happy with how things are going for him and his people, at least until Namor rises up from the depths to declare war on the fictional African kingdom.
