The final MCU movie in Phase 4, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever sports a record-breaking budget for a Hollywood blockbuster.
Black Panther 2 is set to make an impressive mark as it becomes the last movie in Phase 4 of the MCU, paying tribute to Black Panther actor Chadwick Boseman while expanding on the world of Wakanda at the same time. And to do that effectively on the big screen, as has been the case with every Marvel Studios movie over the years, Marvel Studios is putting a hefty budget into developing this latest epic.
This has been the case throughout 2022, with Thor: Love and Thunder coming in with a massive budget of $250 million, a number that most MCU films have come close to in recent years. Since the Multiverse Saga began with Black Widow in 2021, every new movie has utilized at least $200 million for its budget outside of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which was only estimated at about $150 million.
Now, not only does Black Panther 2 continue the recent high-budget trend for the franchise, but it also sets a unique record across the blockbuster movie landscape as well.
Black Panther 2 Sets Hollywood Budget Record
Variety revealed that Marvel Studios' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has a production budget of $250 million. This makes the MCU sequel the most expensive movie featuring a Black lead, taking the title from 2012's Men in Black 3 ($215 million) starring Will Smith, and the original Black Panther from 2018 is in third place at $200 million.
Wakanda Forever's leading role will be filled by Letitia Wright as Shuri, with Angela Bassett (Ramonda), Danai Gurira (Okoye), and Winston Duke (M'Baku) serving in key supporting roles.
The top five budgets for movies with a Black lead can be seen below:
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - $250M
- Men in Black 3 - $215M
- Black Panther - $200M
- Hobbs and Shaw - $200M
- Tenet - $200M
This budget also puts Black Panther 2 in a three-way tie for the fourth-highest budget in MCU history with 2016's Captain America: Civil War and 2022's Thor: Love and Thunder. These are also the three most expensive non-Avengers movies in MCU history as well.
The top five MCU movie budgets can be seen below:
- Avengers: Endgame - $400 Million
- Avengers: Age of Ultron - $365 Million
- Avengers: Infinity War - $300 Million
- Thor: Love and Thunder and Captain America: Civil War - $250 Million
- The Avengers - $225 Million
Black Panther 2 Holding Nothing Back
Black Panther 2 looks to tell one of the biggest stories of any solo movie in MCU history, which was first teased when it was confirmed to have the longest runtime of any Marvel Studios outing other than Avengers: Endgame. And with plenty of exciting visual effects and beautiful set pieces used to tell the story, along with four major actors splitting the leading duties on the acting side, Marvel is truly putting forth its best effort with what should be the biggest MCU movie of 2022.
Thankfully, according to the critics who have seen the Black Panther sequel, that budget was put to great use with a movie that should resonate well with fans upon its debut.
Fans will be curious to find out where that budget is utilized the most, especially with an entire underwater society coming into play with Namor the Sub-Mariner as Wakanda is expanded upon as well. But no matter how that budget is allotted, this new sequel will all out as the Black Panther's legacy adds its next chapter.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will debut in theaters on Friday, November 11.
