Marvel might be changing their minds over who the next Black Panther will be.
Chadwick Boseman’s passing earlier this year broke millions of hearts around the globe, as his countless fans mourned the loss of the many great performances that the talented actor never got to deliver. That includes reprising his role in Black Panther 2, where he was set to return as King T’Challa. The studio paused work on the sequel for a while, but it was recently confirmed that it’s still on track to arrive in 2022.
As for who could take over from the much-missed Boseman as the new protector of Wakanda, it was widely agreed that Letitia Wright’s Shuri is the best option, seeing as T’Challa’s genius sister has been such a fan favorite and the character’s assumed the mantle in the comics. However, a new rumor is now pointing to Marvel perhaps going down a different route instead, as according to what insider Daniel Richtman has heard, M’Baku could be the next Black Panther.
Richtman shared this intriguing tidbit on his Patreon page, explaining that the studio is thinking about upping Winston Duke’s role as the head of the Jabari tribe and having him as the new face of the franchise. Presumably, this change in direction is due to the whirlwind of controversy that Wright swept up on social media earlier this month, but the tipster notes that there’s also a chance that both of them could take the mantle for just this one film.
“Marvel thinking of making M’Baku Black Panther now,” says Richtman. “Shuri may not get it anymore or it could be both of them for this one movie or one or the other, they are undecided.”
As you probably know by now, Wright shared an anti-vaccine video on Twitter a few weeks back, something that resulted in a fierce backlash due to the dangerous unfounded claims made in the clip and also the passages it contained that are of a transphobic nature. She initially did her best to shrug off the criticism – which even came from MCU co-star Don Cheadle – but the actress ultimately deleted her account and has yet to reactive it.
It’s unclear if this will lead to any repercussions for the star, but what Richtman is claiming certainly provides some food for thought. Would you want to see M’Baku as the new Black Panther, though? Have your say in the comments section below.
