Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has been in production for so long, and faced so many difficulties, that the title has begun to feel bitterly ironic. Amidst the sort of Covid-related issues that plague most major blockbusters these days, the entire shoot also had to pause back in November after star Letitia Wright injured herself during a stunt that went wrong while shooting in Boston. The production eventually resumed in mid-January of this year. And of course before the script was even finished, the franchise’s original star, Chadwick Boseman, passed away after a battle with cancer, leaving an enormous void in the center of the sequel that will arguably be impossible to fill. (Marvel has repeatedly insisted they will not recast Boseman’s role as T’Challa.)
Finally, more than two months after production resumed, the Black Panther sequel has wrapped. That’s according to numerous members of the crew, including costume designer Ruth Carter, hairstylist Nikki Wright, and director of photography Autmn Durald, who posted notes to social media announcing that the shoot had finally wrapped, with one even noting that the final day was “Day 117 of 88,” reflecting the fact that the movie has been shooting for quite a bit longer than was originally scheduled.
Marvel has revealed very few details about this sequel to date beyond its official title; it’s not even clear which character in the movie inherits the role of Black Panther and leader of Wakanda. The returning cast besides Letitia Wright includes Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira, Angela Bassett, Martin Freeman, and Winston Duke as M’Baku. One new actor who is definitely joining the cast and the MCU is Dominique Thorne, who will play Ironheart, a young woman who creates her own suit of Iron Man-esque armor, and who will get her own spinoff series on Disney+ in the future.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is currently scheduled to open in theaters on November 11, 2022.
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