The new Black Panther trailer has basically revealed who the new Black Panther is
The first teaser for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever confirmed what many fans had suspected — someone else would take up the mantle of the Black Panther after T’Challa’s (and star Chadwick Boseman’s) death.
And with Monday’s full trailer, Marvel has finally hinted at who might take over. In a continuing trend of the Marvel’s recent Phases, a woman will step into the role of Wakanda’s protector.
The question is, who? Let’s explore the possibilities.
Let’s get the obvious one on the table first. In Marvel Comics lore, Shuri has stepped into the boots of the Black Panther before, when supervillains trapped T’Challa in a state between life and death. She earned Bast’s blessing and underwent the trials to ingest the heart-shaped herb, all while stopping a war. Even after T’Challa recovered, he took a break from being Black Panther and let her keep the job for a while.
Suffice to say, Letitia Wright’s Shuri has plenty of precedent to put on the costume. And, well, the new costume’s mask has her characteristic makeup. But just in case that’s a red herring, here are some other options.
Traditionally, in the comics, the role of Black Panther falls first to someone in Wakanda’s line of succession. But in 2018’s Black Panther, Ryan Coogler and co-writer Joe Robert Cole introduced a ceremony in which Wakanda’s political factions are given a chance to best the Black Panther in single combat, and thereby win the mantle and crown. Which means it doesn’t have to be Shuri under that mask.
Another strong possibility for the role is Lupita Nyong’o’s Nakia, with plenty of experience as one of Wakanda’s covert War Dog operatives and the utmost loyalty to the royal family, as demonstrated in Black Panther (2018). If Marvel Studios has
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