When Chadwick Boseman died unexpectedly two years ago, Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige and writer-director Ryan Coogler were reportedly sent back to the drawing board with the unenviable task of continuing the “Black Panther” saga without its star, and to figure out a way to honor an actor whose performance meant so much to so many people.
The newly released teaser for “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” captures the likely tone, which mixes respect and spectacle. Set to a cover of Bob Marley’s “No Woman, No Cry” recorded by Nigerian artist Tems, the footage shows the secretive, powerful nation of Wakanda mourning the loss of Boseman’s T’Challa, remembered on a poignant mural. Lupita Nyong’o and Danai Gurira look mournfully out at the sea.
But in addition to this rumination on death, comes new a life. An underwater birth, which is probably the origin of Namor the Sub-Mariner, Marvel’s first mutant and the antagonist for the film, played by Tenoch Huerta.
Angela Bassett, T’Challa’s mother, Queen Ramonda, is seen addressing a group of people in some sort of official-looking chamber, declaring “I am queen of the most power nation in the world, and my entire family is gone.” Our guess is that T’Challa’s sister Shuri (Letitia Wright), who is seen briefly in the teaser, gets kidnapped or something along the way.
As Tems sings the refrain “everything is going to be all right,” the music segues into “Alright” by Kendrick Lamar, leading to a quick montage of righteous Wakandan action. Most intriguing is Namor’s army of blue-looking beings, and then, of course, the money shot: someone is in T’Challa’s Black Panther suit, and we don’t yet know who it is.
“Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” is out this November and, as per Feige’s latest TED talk out of San Diego Comic-Con, represents the end of Marvel’s Phase Four.
The original film was, of course, a cultural phenomenon and a breakthrough for Marvel at the Academy Awards. “Black Panther” received seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, and won three awards: Best Score, Best Costume Design, and Best Production Design.
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