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The cast of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, including Danai Gurira, Lupita Nyong’o, Winston Duke, and Letitia Wright, wanted to honor their co-star, Chadwick Boseman, through the making of the film.
The cast of Marvel’s most awaited sequel dominated Hall H at Comic-Con on Saturday, revealing their new trailer.
The cast sat down with EW at Comic-Con studio, sharing why it is crucial for them to get this movie right. On top of everything, according to them, they expect Wakanda Forever will honor Boseman, who was killed in August 2020 at 43 due to colon cancer.
“The most important thing, of course, was honoring our brother, our leader, and our king,” Gurira said in the interview with EW.
“That was definitely at the forefront of our minds and our spirits and our hearts. There was this amazing impact that the first Black Panther had, so the need, I think, was to really solidify that these characters and this world have an arc. It wasn’t a one-time momentous thing.”
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Black Panther Legacy that Wakanda Forever Should Live Up to
The stars of Wakanda Forever said that they want to continue the legacy left behind by their parent film – which smashed box office records and marked the first time a Marvel movie was nominated for the Oscars for Best Picture.
Their goal was to broaden the scope of Panther’s first theme, venture into new areas and strengthen character arcs, said Gurira.
“It’s also important to let go of any expectation that this movie will be Black Panther 1,” Duke chimed in.
“This is going to be its own thing. This narrative has evolved, and it’s changed, just like all the characters and the circumstances of Wakanda itself. For me, in particular, I just had to let go of the expectation of this being anything like the first movie and allow this movie to be its own thing.”
Wakanda forever! The new faces are joined by a well-known cast – Gurira, Nyong’o, Duke, Wright, and Florence Kasumba. In addition, Tenoch Huerta plays fabled ruler Namor alongside Mabel Cadena and Alex Livinalli, portraying the characters of Namora and Attuma.
The movie will also see the debut of Michaela Coel as Aneka and Dominique Thorne as Riri Williams, an excellent teenage tech inventor who will later be featured in her own Disney+ series, Ironheart.
“It was very surreal for me to jump on this train,” Livinalli stated. “It didn’t feel like it was a sequel. It felt like it was its own thing, and I felt very welcome. I felt like I was part of the family.”
The stars have complimented Ryan Coogler’s integrity during the production process and how he has helmed Wakanda’s tale.
“There’s not many directors like Ryan out there,” Write stated.
“The soul and the heart of the film with the writing, and he has a sensitivity to our ideas and how we want to collaborate. [We loved] just having him be the one spearheading these ideas and the structure and just being our leader each day on set. It’s a dream come true to work with him again.”
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is up for release on November 11.
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