Marvel confirms a big time jump takes place for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever after T'Challa's death. The Marvel Cinematic Universe changed significantly with Black Panther's release in 2018, and the movie's incredible success prompted Marvel Studios to begin developing a sequel. Director Ryan Coogler returns for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which will deal with the death of T'Challa in the MCU after Chadwick Boseman's tragic passing in real life. There has been plenty of speculation about how this will impact the sequel, including which character will take over the Black Panther mantle in T'Challa's absence.

The story of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will deal with the fallout of T'Challa's death, which has been confirmed in the trailers. And while the movie is very much made with Chadwick Boseman in mind, what happened to T'Challa is more of a springboard for what else will happen. The main plot revolves around Wakanda coming into conflict with Namor and his underwater kingdom of Talocan. This puts familiar heroes like Shuri, M'Baku, Okoye, and Nakia in the position of having to defend their country from a massive threat, but without T'Challa's help this time.

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In a new press release from Disney and Marvel Studios shared by The Direct, the studios have now confirmed that there is a significant time jump to kick off Black Panther: Wakanda Forever's story. The release includes a quote from Coogler about Ramonda's mindset in the sequel, and he mentions that "it's been a year since T'Challa's passing." With the trailer seemingly showing T'Challa's funeral, the comment points to Black Panther 2 having a time jump after this event which is when the main story will seemingly unfold.

How Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Fits In The MCU Timeline

A wall memorial of T'Challa in Black Panther Wakanda Forever

The confirmation of a one-year time jump in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever provides some context for how the movie fits into the MCU timeline. Audiences last saw T'Challa alive at the end of Avengers: Endgame, which takes place in late 2023. If T'Challa died shortly after returning from The Blip and fighting Thanos, then it would seem that Black Panther: Wakanda Forever could take place in late 2024 at the earliest. But since there has not been any mention of Wakanda's king dying in any other MCU Phase 4 projects, it could mean his death does not happen until the "present day" of the MCU, which is now 2025, pushing Black Panther: Wakanda Forever's events into 2026 potentially.

The true placement of Black Panther 2 in the MCU timeline will likely not become clear until the movie's release. Hopefully, it will be easier to figure out than other Phase 4 titles, which have made the MCU timeline quite messy. Considering the lack of connections Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has to the larger franchise and other properties, there should not be a lot of complicated factors that go into its placement.

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Source: The Direct

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