Original Black Panther 2 Tackled T'Challa's Post-Endgame Struggles

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever writer and director Ryan Coogler reveals that the original plans for the sequel was heavily focused on following the events of Avengers: Endgame. Coogler directed 2018's Black Panther with actor Chadwick Boseman in the titular role as T'Challa/Black Panther, which was both a commercial and critical success, even becoming the first comic book film to earn an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. Boseman returned to the role a few months later in Avengers: Infinity War and was blipped like many other characters, only to return in Endgame, assuring T'Challa's place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In late 2018, a sequel to Black Panther was announced to be in development with Coogler returning to write and direct. However, following the tragic passing of Boseman in 2020, many fans were left wondering what that meant for the Black Panther character. Marvel President and producer Kevin Feige later confirmed that the role of T'Challa would not be recast despite the sequel still moving forward and this left many fans to question the decision, as many believed that there was still more story to tell with the T'Challa character and that it would be a missed opportunity to not build off the legacy Boseman created with his portrayal. Many also wondered how the franchise planned to continue without its lead character, however based on the trailers for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, it appears that Coogler plans to honor Boseman's legacy while shining more light on other pre-existing characters like Letitia Wright's Shuri, as well as introducing new ones like Tenoch Huerta's Namor.

In an interview with Inverse, Coogler addresses how challenging it was to shift the tone and story of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever to deal with Boseman's passing, in comparison to his original idea. It appears that he was able to retain many of the core themes and ideas from his original plans, but did note that his sequel intended to have a greater focus on the events following Avengers: Endgame and T'Challa's struggles with having been gone. Check out the full quote below:

"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."

How Black Panther 2 Retains The Original Script's Ideas

Based on Coogler's comments, it appears that despite the loss of Boseman, the script did not have a drastic shift in terms of tone and story. Coogler mentions that he originally intended for the story to follow T'Challa after Avengers: Endgame as he deals with the grief of being gone for five years and the responsibilities he has to tackle with his return. The theme of grief is something that seems to remain as a heavy focus in the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever trailers, although instead of T'Challa's own grief, it is the grief of other characters over him. In addition, the fact that Namor was always the planned antagonist for the film is evidence that Coogler did not need to make a major shift with the film's central threat, which potentially poses Namor as a villain who attacks characters at their most vulnerable.

It is unfortunate that fans will not get to see more of T'Challa and how his story would continue to develop further into the MCU's future. With that being said, it should also be reassuring to know that the direction Coogler has taken with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has managed to carry over at least portion of the story he always planned. Audiences can only hope that the sequel will hold the same strong themes and nuances that made the first film so memorable when it hits theaters on November 11.

Next: Complete Breakdown Of Black Panther's New Suit In Wakanda ForeverSource: Inverse