In an ideal world, Chadwick Boseman would still be with us, and there wouldn’t be any need to discuss the potential future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Black Panther franchise. Sadly, however, since the actor passed away last summer, Ryan Coogler and Kevin Feige have found themselves in the unwanted position of trying to craft a sequel to one of the most commercially successful and culturally important blockbusters of the modern era without their leading man.
Shooting on the pic begins in less than six months, and the story will look to both continue and broaden the mythology, while paying tribute to the legacy that Boseman left behind. When it was announced that Letitia Wright’s Shuri would play a bigger role in Black Panther 2, most fans were under the impression that she’d ultimately take up the mantle, much like her comic book counterpart.
However, some social media backlash has seen that enthusiasm dampen in certain circles, with Winston Duke’s M’Baku put forward as another potential candidate to inherit the title of the nation’s protector. Now, however, tipster Mikey Sutton is claiming that Michael B. Jordan’s Killmonger could yet end up making a comeback to the fold and become the title hero, saying that he may be revived in the sequel for a “redemption arc” and find himself as the new Black Panther before training Shuri to take on the mantle in the future.
Of course, the actor revealed in a recent interview that he’ll never fully close the door on a return to Wakanda, and in terms of name recognition and star power, he’s a much safer bet than either Wright or Duke. Sure, there’s the obvious hurdle of Killmonger dying at the end of the first movie, but that’s not something the genre has ever struggled to overcome. It would take one hell of a redemption arc to not just bring him back from the dead but position him as the centerpiece of Black Panther 2, but stranger things have certainly happened before.