Black Panther: Wakanda Forever editor Mike Shawver shares details of a deleted scene pitting Okoye against the Dora Milaje. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is the longest movie in Phase Four at just over two hours and forty minutes. The movie balanced many storylines, including all of the characters mourning T'Challa, Shuri's journey to become the next Black Panther, and the introductions of Riri Williams, Namor, and Talokan.
Okoye's storyline in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was especially heavy, as she not only mourns her King but also loses a piece of her identity. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever pulls Okoye between duty and family once again as she loses Shuri and Riri while attempting to help Shuri move past her grief. In the wake of this, Okoye is stripped of her rank as General of the Dora Milaje and dismissed from her duty. During Screen Rant's exclusive interview with Shawver shared details about a deleted scene with Okoye following this loss in an intense face-off against the rest of the Dora Milaje.
I'd say, wholesale, there's a scene that was taken out. I don't think Marvel would be mad at me saying this because there was a shot in the first teaser from this scene. There was a scene where Okoye, after she gets fired, tries to go get Shuri herself undercover at night. She goes to try to get on a ship, and the Dora Milaje stop her. They point the spears, and she's ready to fight them for Shuri. It was in Wakanda at night outside, but it was really tense. Okoye, who obviously is a fan favorite and so badass, is having to face her sisters. It was a great scene, but holding it down to Shuri's story mainly was what worked best for this.
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Ramonda dismissing Okoye from the Dora Milaje is devastating, but to see the Dora Milaje stop her as she tries to save Shuri would have added a new layer to her loss and given even more emotional weight to Okoye becoming a Midnight Angel as she fights alongside the Dora in the final battle. Shawver also revealed details about the first cut, including the fact that it was over four hours long. While this scene would have further developed Okoye’s arc, it didn’t add to the plot or elevate Shuri’s arc, which, as Shawver said, needed to remain the focus.
When Chadwick Boseman died, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever completely changed. Honoring his legacy and dealing with grief became a central theme of the sequel, with Shuri's own mourning process being a huge part of her character's growth. Given the sheer amount of story, it isn’t a surprise that the initial version needed to be cut down. Some of these cuts included elements of Shuri’s story, including a subplot that involved Shuri and Riri designing something with Namor for Talokan.
With nearly two hours of additional story being changed for time, the first cut of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever must have looked very different. Character arcs like Okoye's could be further fleshed out, while subplots that were dropped could bring out new depths to the story and characters. An extended director's cut would further flesh out character arcs like Okoye's while also exploring new elements of the story, like the subplot with Shuri and Riri. Hopefully Marvel releases this version of the movie down the line, so audiences can fully immerse themselves into the world of Wakanda and Talokan, gaining new insight into these characters.