Photo: Matt Kennedy/Marvel/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection
Daniel Kaluuyawill not be reprising his role as W’Kabi inBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever.
On Wednesday, sources confirmed toVarietythat though he was asked to return, Kaluuya, 33, had already committed to starring in Jordan Peele’s upcoming horror filmNopeand therefore had to turn down the role.
Marvel Studios PresidentKevin Feigeconfirmed toVarietyin June 2021 that the sequel to 2018’sBlack Pantherhad started filming at Atlanta’s Pinewood Studios.
Chadwick Boseman.Rick Rowell via Getty
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“But everyone is also very excited to bring the world of Wakanda back to the public and back to the fans,” Feige said during aBlack WidowGlobal Fan Event in Los Angeles, according toVariety.
“We’re going to do it in a way that would make Chad proud,” he added.
During Disney’s Investor Day in December, Feige also announced that in honor of Boseman, his titular role asthe Wakandan superhero would not be recast.
Instead, the upcoming film “will explore the world of Wakanda & the richcharacters introduced in the first film,” Disney shared on Twitter.
Chadwick Boseman.Marvel/Disney/Kobal/Shutterstock
Boseman’s costarLupita Nyong’ospoke about the upcoming film in an interview withYahoo! Entertainmentin April, saying that her feelings about returning to theBlack Pantheruniverse go beyond “excitement.”
“I’m in a very pensive and meditative state when it comes toBlack Panther 2,” said the actress, 38. “[Chadwick’s] passing is still extremely raw for me. And I can’t even begin to imagine what it will be like to step on set and not have him there.”
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Nyong’o explained that Coogler’s screenplaycarefully addresses Boseman’s absence, saying, “At the same time we have a leader in Ryan, who feels very much like we do, who feels the loss in a very, very real way as well.”
“The way which he has reshaped the second movie is so respectful of the loss we’ve all experienced as a cast and as a world,” she added.
Wakanda Foreveris set to premiere later this year on Nov. 11.Nopewill debut in theaters on July 22.
source: people.com
