Black Panther Actor Winston Duke Reveals Most of His Avengers: Endgame Footage Was Cut

Winston Duke recently revealed what happened to all of the footage of him from Avengers: Endgame. The Black Panther actor talked to The Hollywood Reporter about Spenser Confidential and his role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. M'Baku is a bit of a fan-favorite at this point in the popular consciousness. It feels like there could have been room for at least one amazing beat with him in that long relay near the end of the film. The star told the publication that there were a couple, but, they're somewhere on the cutting room floor.

"I shot with everyone. The raw footage was just so long with everyone that my stuff didn't make it in," Duke said. "I filmed so much fighting for it, and I was really bummed to not see any of it in the movie. (Laughs.) I did so many fighting scenes in Endgame during that final battle where they're trying to keep the gauntlet away from Thanos. It was really cool. Marvel knows what they're doing, and it all leads to the best product. So, I am happy; I was just very disappointed that nobody got to see all the stuff I was doing."

Well, deleted scenes and social media will probably unearth those moments at some point soon. But, THR couldn't resist asking some questions about Duke's first trip to Wakanda as well. A lot is made of the fact that there is little interaction between Michael B. Jordan's Killmonger and T'Challa's rival. The actor is adamant that his character would never help the antagonist.

"I think he would've shut him down immediately. M'Baku is the ultimate conservative of Wakanda," he explained. "He believes in closed borders; he doesn't believe in outsiders. He believes that Wakanda should be for Wakandans. He's that hyper-conservative minority. Any alliance with any outside party wouldn't work with him. At the core of his being — at least how we met him — he's a guy of integrity. I don't think he would want to take over the throne in any insidious way."

"If M'Baku was gonna do that, I think he would've accepted the heart-shaped herb when they brought it to him and not revealed T'Challa's frozen body," Duke added. "I think he would've just taken it for himself, but he demonstrated great conviction in turning it down and agreeing to show up to help change the day and change the tide of that battle. That ensured that Wakanda was safe, and he stayed on the moral high ground. I think M'Baku is a lot more approachable than people give him credit for."

Are you excited to see M'Baku again in Black Panther 2? Let us know down in the comments.

Black Panther 2 strides into theaters on May 6, 2022