Black Panther and Nope Star Daniel Kaluuya Reveals He Almost Gave Up on Acting

There was a time not too long ago that Daniel Kaluuya thought of giving up the art of acting. The Black Panther star made the revelation in a chat with Nope helmer and frequent collaborator Jordan Peele in a piece for Essence. According to the Oscar-winning actor, he was having a hard time getting roles and feeling welcome in the craft.

"I've never told you this, but when you reached out to me and we had that Skype, I was really disillusioned with acting. I had stopped acting for like a year and a half," the actor said.

He added, "I checked out, because I was just like, this isn't working. I wasn't getting roles, because racism and all this kind of stuff—so you reaching out was like, Okay, I'm not crazy. It's proper. It's going to be all right."

On the same day this piece was published, it was revealed Kaluuya was unable to film any scenes for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever due to scheduling conflicts. In a previous interview, the actor revealed he wasn't going to specifically ask Ryan Coogler for a role.

"I have no idea. I speak to Ryan, I'm not gonna go, 'Yo, [put me in the movie].' He's living his life and working hard," Kaluuya explained when asked about the status of W'Kabi. "Whatever the story needs, you know? That [first movie] was a moment for us, and I don't want to go like, 'I'm trying to be in it just because I want it.' It's for us, I'm a fan."

Kaluuya continued, "I'm that kind of person if the story and the piece is better without me, I'm like, 'Yo, I'm gonna watch this,' because I really wanna watch it. And if I'm in it and I'm able to serve it, then I'm in it. And I just stay in that position."

Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Winston Duke, Letitia Wright, Angela Bassett, and Martin Freeman lead Marvel's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which opens in theaters on November 11th.

What other surprises do you think are in store for the Black Panther sequel? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section or by hitting our writer @AdamBarnhardt up on Twitter to chat all things MCU!