Black Panther 3 Confirmed by Marvel Studios in Bittersweet Announcement

Black Panther 3 has officially been confirmed by Marvel Studios — but the announcement comes with a bittersweet update for the studio itself. According to Deadline, longtime Marvel executive Nate Moore, who was a producer on Black Panther as well as various other Marvel projects including Eternals and the upcoming Captain America: Brave New World, is leaving the studio to pursue producing outside of Marvel next year. In a statement, Kevin Feige and Louis D’Esposito praised Moore’s work for the studio but also revealed that while Moore is moving on, his connection to Marvel isn’t done just yet, as they will be working with him for the next Black Panther film.

“Nate is a fantastic executive and colleague as well as a wonderful friend to all of us here at Marvel Studios,” the statement reads. “He has been a core member of our team since 2010, and his influence will continue to reverberate in our storytelling. Although we’ll miss him a great deal, we look forward to watching what he does next while also having the good fortune of working with him in a new way on our next Black Panther movie.”

Moore himself also confirmed a return to Wakanda for a third installment of Black Panther, noting in his own statement that he’s excited to apply what he learned at Marvel beyond the comic book genre.

[RELATED: Black Panther 3: Denzel Washington Apologized to Director After Leaking Casting]

“Nearly everything I know about producing I’ve learned from my time at Marvel Studios,” Moore said. “I feel lucky to have worked with a group of people who love filmmaking and storytelling as much as my Marvel colleagues and the cast and crew of our films. But I couldn’t be more excited to apply my experience and passion for film towards theatrical movies in all genres, including returning to the world of Wakanda for Black Panther 3.”

The announcement of Moore’s departure from Marvel Studios — which is expected to take place sometime in early 2025 — serves as the first official confirmation of Black Panther 3, which has been expected since the release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever back in 2022. While fans have assumed that a third film in the Black Panther franchise was a given, fans have largely only gotten rumors about the project, though last month Gladiator II star Denzel Washington revealed that he will appear in the film, with a role specifically written for him by Ryan Coogler. That revelation came during an appearance on Australia’s Today show and quickly resulted in Washington having to reach out to Coogler for prematurely revealing details about the project. Fortunately, according to Washington, Coogler was okay with Washington’s slip.

What Will Black Panther 3 Be About?

As for what Black Panther 3 could be about, Tuesday’s revelation didn’t offer any significant clues. Prevailing theories about the film include exploring a Wakanda versus the rest of the world situation in the aftermath of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever which saw Wakanda’s role on the global stage shift dramatically, or a possible connection to Captain America: Brave New World which would also see a shift in Wakanda’s place on the world stage with the introduction of adamantium to the mix, among others. However, we realistically aren’t likely to know much about Black Panther 3 until at least sometime in 2025 after the release of Eyes of Wakanda next August, which is set to have close ties to the MCU.

Keep checking with ComicBook for updates on Black Panther 3.