Merchandise for the upcoming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever reveals the costumes that Shuri and Okoye will likely be wearing in the Marvel sequel. The film, which comes to theaters on November 11, 2022, will be the next theatrical release in Phase 4 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe following Thor: Love and Thunder next weekend. Wakanda Forever is the follow-up to the 2018 Oscar-winning Black Panther, the film that explored the title character's homeland of Wakanda after he and his father T'Chaka were first introduced in 2016's Captain America: Civil War.
Tragically, Black Panther lead actor Chadwick Boseman passed away from colon cancer in 2020. This forced returning director and co-writer Ryan Coogler to restructure the follow-up film. He ultimately decided not to recast T'Challa (AKA Black Panther), instead focusing on further exploring the supporting characters that were introduced in the original film. This ensemble includes Lupita Nyong'o as Nakia, Danai Gurira as Okoye, Daniel Kaluuya as W'Kabi, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Winston Duke as M'Baku, and Angela Bassett as Ramonda, all denizens of the high-tech African nation of Wakanda, which was revealed to the world in the end of the first film. Black Panther 2 will also introduce the character Riri Williams, played by Dominique Thorne, who will later be featured in her own MCU Disney+ series, Ironheart.
Today, the Twitter account MCU Facility shared a new image from the upcoming tie-in toy line for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The picture offers an early look at the return of Okoye and Shuri, featuring the costumes that both will presumably be wearing in the film. While Okoye's costume is consistent with what the Dora Milaje wore in the first film, Shuri's costume is an athletic pants and jacket combo with a color scheme that seems reminiscent of Black Panther's superhero uniform. Check out the image below:
Click here to view the original post on Twitter.
Shuri and Okoye were both major figures in Black Panther, despite Boseman's T'Challa being front and center. Okoye is the General of the Dora Milaje special forces who are charged with protecting the leaders of the country. Shuri, meanwhile, is the sister of T'Challa, and one of the smartest characters in the MCU.
Not much is officially known about the plot of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. However, this outfit lends some credence to the rumors that Shuri will be taking over her brother's role as Black Panther in some capacity. Likely, the first plot details will start to come out after the release of Thor: Love and Thunder and the MCU series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, at which point the sequel's release date will be much closer in sight.
Source: MCU Facility/Twitter
