Marvel Studios is preparing itself for another major year of content releases, which will close out in theaters with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Although production has been plagued with controversy and challenges, Black Panther 2 looks to expand heavily on the Wakandan legacy for Marvel Studios. Paying tribute to Chadwick Boseman while introducing the MCU's Ironheart, this sequel will be jam-packed from start to finish.
Now that Black Panther is getting its well-deserved sequel, this individual story has a chance to truly move forward and add more details to everything that came in Phase 3. Wakanda's upcoming battle with Atlantis and other countries will bring the African nation into the global spotlight more so than ever before, all while its people recover from losing their king, T'Challa.
This film should also have the chance to give more depth to Wakanda's history, which came through during the opening moments of Black Panther and was teased in other films like Avengers: Age of Ultron and Captain America: Civil War. Now, as Wakanda Forever inches closer to its debut, rumors are pointing to the sequel giving the MCU its earliest moment of history to date.
Black Panther 2 Giving Early MCU Flashback
The Cosmic Circus revealed filming details from the set of Marvel Studios' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Currently, the team is filming in and around the former Ritz Carlton Hotel and Casino in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The inside of the hotel feels similar to a royal palace as chandeliers hang in the main lobby, along with what's described as "fascinating architecture."
Additionally, Marvel is casting extras of various ethnic backgrounds to play roles for this shoot, which takes place from March 18 to March 23. Local calls are for Black children and adults, actors with European features that could play Conquistadors and Friars, and individuals with indigenous features that are seen in natives of Central America, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
As The Cosmic Circus speculates, these descriptions seem to suggest that Marvel is filming a flashback sequence set during the 1500s-1600s, which may show the European Colonization of the Americas.
Another MCU Flashback Scene Coming to Life
The MCU is known for using flashback scenes at the start of its movies and TV shows to help set the stage for what's happening in the present day. Most recently, fans saw the story go back to about 5000 BC when the Eternals first landed on Earth in Eternals, while films like 2011's Thor have gone back in time over 1000 years to set up long-standing battles.
This scene in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever appears to be another moment setting up an imminent battle coming for the people of Wakanda as one of the earliest Earth-based moments in MCU history.
Wakanda was an almost completely isolated nation throughout its time in Phase 3, only opening up to the rest of the world after T'Challa revealed more about his people in Vienna. While it's unclear if the Wakandans will be involved with this scene specifically, it keeps up the theme of expansion throughout the world from other countries that may stand in opposition to Wakanda.
Black Panther 2 looks to give fans a deeper look into the inner workings of Wakanda while also setting the country's place in the world more into stone. With threats looming from every angle, this flashback will help set the stage for the intense battles that fans will see in Wakanda's return to the big screen.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is set to debut in theaters on November 11, 2022.
