While Marvel Studios has yet to kick off its 2022 theatrical slate, fans are already getting excited about what will be the studio's final film of the year. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is set to hit theaters on November 11 of this year, despite suffering its share of production hiccups and having to deal with the tragic passing of its leading man in Chadwick Boseman.
After losing Boseman back in Fall 2020 the question of if a Black Panther sequel would ever happen started to pop up. Well, director Ryan Coogler and the cast decided it would be best to honor the actor's legacy and carry on.
Amongst the returning cast is Shuri actress Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong'o (aka Nakia), M'Baku himself Winston Duke, and Angela Basset as Queen Ramonda. It seems all of Wakanda is back for more, including another familiar face to fans.
M'Kathu in Black Panther 2
A new photo taken of the cast of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever indicates that M'Kathu actor Danny Sapani will return as the character in the MCU sequel.
The image was tweeted by Lupita Nyong'o (Nakia) and includes Nyong'o, Winston Duke (M'Baku), Angela Basset (Queen Ramonda), Letitia Wright (Shuri) and Danny Sapani (M'Kathu) all celebrating the fourth anniversary of the original Black Panther film.
"Greetings from Wakanda! Happy 4th anniversary to #BlackPanther."
See the photo below:
Wakanda is Better With Everyone
While the full cast of Wakanda Forever has yet to be revealed, at this point, one can assume all the big names will be back for the MCU sequel. Seeing Sapani in the above photo marks another other main tribe leaders of Wakanda back for Black Panther 2.
Rumor has been that the upcoming film, while introducing new realms of the MCU, would also dive deeper into the various tribes of the fictional African nation, so it would make sense that Sapani and his counterparts of the other tribes would be making a return.
What the M'Kathu actor's return actually means for the story of Wakanda Forever is still up in the air, but one can do a bit of speculating when seeing news such as this. With another of the tribal leaders coming back into the fray could this mean another search for the next leader of Wakanda?
While this could feel like a retread of familiar territory, it does feel like the empty throne that T'Challa left behind will be a major plot point of the upcoming sequel, and thus feels like a natural place for these figureheads to come together on-screen again to pick a new king (or queen).
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hits theaters on November 11, 2022.