Is 'Black Panther' Setting up the MCU Female Black Panther?

A Tale of Two Suits

The scene pictured above could be interpreted in one of two ways:

1. Shuri has two Black Panther suits, meant for two wearers.
2. Shuri is presenting T'Challa with the upgraded version of his Black Panther suited (left), which is comparatively positioned next to the old model we saw in Captain America: Civil War (right).

The second option is by far the most likely, as any quick comparison between Civil War and Black Panther footage confirms that the two suits in the scene above are old and new prototypes of T'Challa's Black Panther costume.

However, the latest Black Panther trailer also confirms that the film will dive into the idea of Vibranium technology and the Panther suits being snatched from T'Challa's hands; Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) will suit up as The Golden Jaguar to fight T'Challa for the mantle. If Killmonger gets his own Black Panther suit to become Golden Jaguar, then it certainly seems just as likely that the film could be sending Shuri down a path that's in keeping with her Marvel Comics origins...

The Female Panther

In Marvel Comics, Shuri is the youngest child of King T'Chaka and T'Challa's half-sister, whose dream was to be the first female to hold the mantle of Black Panther. She was highly trained and skilled in combat, but never put it to full use until she was forced to wield the fabled Ebony Blade and kill Radioactive Man, during Klaw's attempted invasion of Wakanda.

After the trauma of her first kill, Shuri was trained by T'Challa in the full ways of Black Panther. Later on, when T'Challa was left comatose, Shuri dared to put on the Black Panther costume without the Panther God's blessing, and was still able to defended Wakanda against threats (like Killmonger); she even saved T'Challa himself. With her worthiness being proved the hard way, the Panther God granted Shuri the full powers of a Black Panther.

While the Black Panther movie franchise may only be getting started, it's never too early to start seeding future events in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This MCU version of Shuri seems to be a tech-wiz, and its pretty clear from the footage that she has the know-how to actually build herself a Black Panther costume.

With T'Challa joining the Avengers in their Infinity War against Thanos, and Avengers 3 production teasers pointing to that war reaching the borders of Wakanda, the fabled "El Dorado" country may need a defender, when its king is away. It wouldn't be out of the question, then, for a film like Avengers 4 to introduce the female Black Panther - or for Shuri to take up the mantle sometime in Phase 4 of the MCU.

After all, many of the original MCU superheroes are expected to either retire, be killed, or pass on their mantles after Phase 3 is over - and with potential substitutions like Jane Foster's female Thor, or RiRi Williams as the new Iron Man, the Avengers' future could definitely be female - and that includes a slot for a female Black Panther, as well.

Black Panther will be in theaters on February 16th. Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Thor: Ragnarok will be in theaters on November 3rd. Avengers: Infinity War on May 4, 2018, Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6, 2018, Captain Marvelon March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3in 2020.