The panther returns

Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever started filming June 29, 2021 – coming out in theaters November 11, 2022 – finishing Phase Four of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Phase Four consists of Black Widow, Shang-Chi the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, Spider-Man: No Way Home, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor Love and Thunder, and lastly, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.  

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever made $181 million on opening weekend and $330 million globally, beating Hunger Games that made $155 million and Avatar that made $77 million. Already having six Marvel movies in the top ten for opening weekend records, we all knew Marvel Studios would do Black Panther: Wakanda Forever justice.  

Letitia Wright plays Shuri, who deals with the grief over her brother T’Challa, while fighting against the UN and Talokun. Switching the main character from the original Black Panther, Chadwick Boseman, to Letitia Wright, playing Shuri, was a perfect choice. Not only did this movie pass the Bechdel test but because of the main character switch, we saw powerful female role models fighting against Kukulan, a “feathered serpent god,” who is the leader of Talokun, an underwater civilization. 

The United Nations and Ramonda, the leader of Wakanda, fight over Wakanda’s rights especially with the usage of vibranium ever since T’Challa’s death. Claiming they have lost their Black Panther, Wakanda proves them wrong when the Dora Milaje, a powerful female assassin group, teams up with Shuri, Nakia, and CIA Agent Everett Ross, to prove that Wakanda is here to stay. 

Go out and watch this spectacular piece of the Cinematic Multiverse in theaters now or cover your ears until July 8 when it will be released on Disney Plus.