Black Panther is back!
David Johnson has been cast as the new Black Panther and will play T’Challa’s son in Black Panther 3, which will be released on December 15, 2028. The film follows Prince T’Challa II, played by Johnson, from his appearance as a child in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever until he becomes an adult.
Director Ryan Coogler will continue to star in the third film, with Letitia Wright reprising her role as Shuri and Winston Duke as M’Baku. The news was announced at Marvel’s Comic-Con Hall H panel.
Wright took over the role of Black Panther from his late co-star Chadwick Boseman in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, with Shuri becoming the eponymous superhero. Boseman, who played T’Challa in the original Black Panther, died of colon cancer in 2020 at the age of 43, while Coogler was working on the sequel. The character T’Challa II was introduced in Wakanda Forever as the son of T’Challa and Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o).
Jonsson has recently appeared in “Alien Romulus” and the film adaptation of Stephen King’s “The Long Walk.” Wright told Variety in January 2023, after the release of Wakanda Forever, that he believed the third film in the series was “already in the works.”
“You know, we’ve had a great two years putting this work out and everyone coming together to support it,” Wright said in an interview. “We need a little bit of a break, we have to regroup, and Ryan has to go back to the lab, so it’s going to take a little while, but I’m really looking forward to everyone seeing it.”
The first Black Panther movie, released in 2018, grossed $1.3 billion worldwide and starred Boseman, Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Forest Whitaker, Michael B. Jordan, Danai Gurira, and Angela Bassett. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, making it the first superhero film to be nominated. The film won three Oscars, including Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, and Best Original Score.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever grossed $859 million worldwide when it was released in 2022, and had one of the most profitable opening weekends post-pandemic, earning $331 million worldwide. The film was nominated for five Academy Awards, with Angela Bassett’s Best Supporting Actress nomination marking the first time a Marvel actor has been nominated for an Academy Award.
Marvel fans won’t have to wait long to see Wright reprise his role as Black Panther, as she’s part of the expansive cast of Avengers: Doomsday. The film will be released in theaters on December 18th.
