One MCU star is looking forward to being a bigger part of Marvel's next major hero team-up film, Avengers: Doomsday. The fifth Avengers film boasts an impressive cast of over 20 names, but with Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame spelling the end of several major characters, this means others will have to step up. One character in particular who will have a larger role is Letitia Wright's Shuri, aka the new Black Panther.
Wright addressed her part in Avengers: Doomsday, in a recent interview with Flip Your Wig while promoting her directorial debut Highway to the Moon. The actress recounted her time on Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, saying she was involved in a "smaller way," but was looking forward to "[having] a little bit more" to do in Avengers: Doomsday, hinting at an expanded role for Shuri:
“It’s just an ensemble of greatness, so I was just really excited to just be a part of it. I’ve been a part of it before, but in a more smaller way. Now I have a little bit more.”
Earlier in the year, Wright shared a picture of her training for Avengers: Doomsday as the actress hit the weights in preparation for some physical scenes. Her last appearance in the MCU was in 2022's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which addressed the demise of King T'Challa (in response to the real-life tragic passing of star Chadwick Boseman), and saw his sister, the tech genius Shuri, take on the mantle of the Black Panther.
Before that, Shuri was also present in Avengers: Infinity War, where the nation of Wakanda became a battleground for the Avengers and Thanos' forces. She then disappeared due to the snap but returned in Avengers: Endgame, where she arrived to assist in the final fight.
Avengers: Doomsday is currently in production in and around the UK. Other major MCU stars, such as Chris Hemsworth, Paul Rudd, Sebastian Stan, and Florence Pugh, are set to reprise their roles, and Anthony and Joe Russo are directing the film. Plot details for the Phase 6 MCU film are being kept closely under wraps (as is the remainder of the cast list), but several superhero teams are expected to appear in Avengers 5.
What to Expect From the New Black Panther in Avengers: Doomsday
With T'Challa's mantle officially passed to Shuri, it seems she may also fill her brother's place on the Avengers team as well. Whether Shuri joins Sam Wilson's Avengers or sides with her old ally, Bucky Barnes, on the New Avengers could be an interesting turn in the story.
Shuri was last seen forming a truce with Namor and his underwater nation of Talokan. With Tenoch Huerta also a confirmed member of the Avengers: Doomsday ensemble, Shuri may be the way to bring the Talokanil into the action, potentially calling on them for help in the fight against Robert Downey Jr.'s Victor von Doom (or maybe it will be the other way around).
Wright is one of several Black Panther actors set to reprise their roles in Avengers: Doomsday, along with Winston Duke's M'Baku, the new King of Wakanda. It will be interesting to see how Shuri and M'Baku's new vision for Wakanda is going after the events of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, as they split the sovereign duties between them, with M'Baku taking on the role of the King and Shuri as the Black Panther.
