Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Star Martin Freeman Praises the Script, Filming Starts Soon

Ahead of its release next summer, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will soon begin principal photography. In a recent appearance on The One, Black Panther star Martin Freeman confirmed he’s read the script and is excited to “head to the States” in the coming months to begin filming his scenes.

“No, apart from the fact that it’s happening because as you will have guessed, Marvel have sworn us all to secrecy,” the Sherlock alum told host Ronan Keating (via Metro). “I’ve read the script. It’s very good and we will be doing it at some point I guess in the next several months. I’ll be going to the States and doing that, but I’m very excited about it.”

It’s expected Wakanda Forever will begin filming at some time in July.

Ryan Coogler is directing from a script he also wrote. Earlier this year, the filmmaker spoke with Jemele Hill on her Unbothered podcast about the difficulties in recrafting the script after the passing of Chadwick Boseman.

“You know, I’m currently going through it,” he explained. “One thing that I’ve learned in my short or long time on this Earth, however, you want to look at it, it’s difficult to have perspective on something while you’re going through it. This is one of the more profound things that I’ve ever gone through in my life, having to be a part of keeping this project going without this particular person. Who was like the glue that held it together.”

He added, “That said, you have a personal life, you have a professional life, you got a private life. When you work in something that you love, those things blend, they come together right? Your life kind of becomes your work for the better part of it. So, I’m trying to find a work-life balance, so I’m working on building two things that can stand on their own. I’m not there yet. But, this is without question, the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my professional life.”

In a separate interview, Black Panther star Lupita Nyong’o praised Coogler’s leadership during the trying times.

“People will ask me, ‘Are you excited to go back?’ Excitement isn’t the word. I feel like I’m in a very pensive and meditative state when it comes to Black Panther 2. His passing is still extremely raw for me,” Nyong’o told Yahoo!. “And I can’t even begin to imagine what it will be like to step on set and not have him there… But at the same time we have a leader in Ryan, who feels very much like we do, who feels the loss in a very, very real way as well.”

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is currently set to premiere in theaters on July 8, 2022. Kingdom of Wakanda does not yet have a release date on Disney+.