Black Panther Star Winston Duke Warns Fans to Change Their Expectations for Wakanda Forever

By Nicole Drum

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is set to open in theaters this November and it may be one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's most eagerly anticipated films yet. The follow up to the hugely popular and groundbreaking Black Panther, the film was always going to be significant within the MCU but following the death of T'Challa/Black Panther actor Chadwick Boseman in August 2020 after a private battle with colon cancer, everything about the film shifted. Now, Winston Duke, who plays M'Baku in the franchise, says that fans need to let go of expectations for Wakanda Forever, telling Entertainment Weekly that the film will be its own thing.

"It's also important to let go of any expectation that this movie will be Black Panther 1," Duke said. "This is going to be its own thing. This narrative has evolved, and it's changed, just like all the characters and the circumstances of Wakanda itself. For me in particular, I just had to let go of the expectation of this being anything like the first movie and allow this movie to be its own thing."

Even with the film being its own experience, it also will still honor Boseman and pay tribute to the actor. Danai Gurira said that honoring the late actor was at the forefront of their work on the film.

"The most important thing, of course, was honoring our brother, our leader, and our king," Gurira said. "That was definitely at the forefront of our minds and our spirits and our hearts. There was this amazing impact that the first Black Panther had, so the need, I think was to really solidify that these characters and this world have an arc. It wasn't a one-time momentous thing."

"In Marvel Studios' "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M'Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje (including Florence Kasumba), fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T'Challa's death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda. Introducing Tenoch Huerta as Namor, king of a hidden undersea nation, the film also stars Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Mabel Cadena and Alex Livanalli."

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever arrives in theaters on November 11th.

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