Marvel boss Kevin Feige recently told Empire how David Johnson was cast as the next Black Panther. He explained that the “Long Walk” star met “Black Panther” director Ryan Coogler in a “secret meeting” and that the Oscar winner immediately tapped Johnson for his next lead role.
“We hadn’t started the search yet,” Feige explained. “Ryan is working on ‘Sinners,’ and when Ryan works on a project, he’s all in. So after ‘Sinners’ came out, after the Academy campaign was over, we waited until after the Academy Awards to sit down with Ryan and start that process.”
She added: “About a month and a half before the process, he called me and said, ‘We found him.’ I said, ‘What do you mean?'” He said, “I found it.” He’s this guy, David Johnson. ” he said, referring to his film. I had seen some of them. I saw more. He said, “I’ll go see you.” He had a secret meeting with him in the dark in some hotel, and then he called me and said, “He’s a man, he’s a man, that’s how I felt.” I felt it in my soul. He’s a good guy and the next Black Panther. ” Then I got chills and I kind of got into it and said, “Let’s do it.” So we’ve been keeping this secret for five or six months. ”
Johnson will play T’Challa’s son in Black Panther 3, which will be released in theaters on December 15, 2028. The announcement was made Saturday at San Diego Comic-Con’s Marvel’s Hall H panel. Original cast members Letitia Wright and Winston Duke return in the new chapter as Prince T’Challa II comes of age and takes on the mantle of Black Panther.
After Chadwick Boseman passed away from colon cancer in 2020 at the age of 43, Wright first took over the role of Black Panther in 2022’s Wakanda Forever.
Marvel released the original “Black Panther” in 2018 to overwhelming acclaim. It grossed $1.3 billion worldwide and was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture.
