At Disney Investor Day 2020, it was revealed by Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige that the role of T'Challa, formally played by the late Chadwick Boseman, would not be recast in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Many co-stars reacted to the news, like Angela Bassett and Daniel Kaluuya, who both respected the decision by the studio and felt that it honored Boseman.
However, that hasn't stopped fans from speculating on the chance of the role being recast further into the future. It has been officially stated that the role won't be in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but that doesn't mean the character can't see a return in the threequel or the next Avengers crossover.
Thankfully, a producer has finally made the answer as clear as they can to fans.
Marvel Studios Won't Recast Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa
In an interview on the Ringer-Verse podcast, via Twitter, Vice President of Production & Development at Marvel Studios Nate Moore was asked whether T'Challa would ever be recast in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Moore bluntly stated, "not hedging [his] bets," that T'Challa won't appear again "in the MCU 616 universe:"
"I will say the chances that you see T'Challa in our... I'm not hedging my bets, I'm being quite honest. You will not see T'Challa in the MCU 616 universe."
Moore elaborated that the conversation to recast the character took "minutes" and ended in them having "to figure out how to move this franchise on" without T'Challa:
"We couldn't do it. I will say when Chad passed, it was a real conversation we had with Coogler about 'What do we do?' And it was a fast conversation. It wasn't weeks, it was minutes of, 'We have to figure out how to move this franchise on without that character.'"
Obviously, the unexpected passing of Boseman left a "big hole," but "at no point did [they] consider recasting him" due to how closely tied his performance was to the character in the MCU:
"Because I think we all feel so much of T'Challa in the MCU on the screen is tied to Chadwick's performance—is what he brought to that role both on and off-screen, I would argue. So, as hard as it is, now we got to figure out what to do because it's a big hole. At no point did we consider recasting him."
The challenge moving forward for the Black Panther sequel would be telling its story without T'Challa, which Moore believed was a challenge "[they're] up for" and that what they have so far is "great:"
"The challenge for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is telling a story without T'Challa. And I think it's a challenge we're up for and, obviously, we're in the middle of it and we're figuring it out and what we're getting so far is great."
Moore felt that one challenge for the film "is to entertain people" and that "there will be a level of catharsis" for audiences returning to this universe, despite T'Challa being missing from it:
"But the challenge of the movie is to entertain people, but there will be a level of catharsis in people coming back to this universe without that guy because that guy and that universe are one and the same. As filmmakers and storytellers, you have to figure out how people are gonna feel going into your movie and what you want that movie is going to say about that guy who's not going to be in your movie."
Chance To See Multiversal T'Challa?
Many fans have zeroed in on Moore's specific wording of T'Challa not being recast in "the MCU 616 universe" to mean viewers could still see a T'Challa from another universe. This is something that is certainly possible, especially with the Multiverse becoming heavily featured in the MCU.
Watching the interview, it seemed that Moore was being blunt in stating that no one would be replacing Boseman in the role of T'Challa in this franchise presently or in the future. After all, one big rumor seems to indicate that Marvel Studios already have a plan in motion for the future of Black Panther.
Fans will see how Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will tell its story without Chadwick Boseman when it is released in theaters on July 8, 2022.
