Black Panther 2 Will Introduce A Major Marvel Character
Black Panther 2 may be introducing a surprising Marvel character into the Marvel Cinematic Universe!
This article is more than 2 years old
The tragic passing of Chadwick Boseman continues to lead to speculation as to exactly what we can expect to see in next year’s Black Panther 2. While production on the sequel will soon shut down temporarily, the speculation is sure to continue, and today there’s a new report that a very specific character will be appearing. In particular, the report claims that the film will introduce us to the son of the T’Challa.
The story comes from The Cosmic Circus, who cites unnamed inside sources for the news that Black Panther 2 will reveal that T’Challa and his old flame Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) will have a child. That son will be T’Challa’s heir, though he won’t be old enough at the time of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever to take over the mantle of the eponymous hero. Instead, Cosmic Circus tells us, it will indeed be T’Challa’s sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) who takes over the mantle of Black Panther as she did for a time in the comics.
Cosmic Circus further speculates that while the child of T’Challa and Nakia will be introduced in Black Panther 2, he may be featured more in the upcoming Wakanda-related series being developed for Disney+. They also wonder if the character might become a part of any future Young Avengers projects. If their story is accurate and we are about to meet the son of T’Challa, both of their guesses would seem like good ones.
While he may apparently have one in Black Panther 2, T’Challa does not have any children in the prime timeline of Marvel Comics, however as Cosmic Circus notes, the super-powered son of T’Challa and the X-Men’s Storm — named Azari — was introduced in the 2008 animated movie Next Avengers: Heroes of Tomorrow. The movie featured the children of the mostly deceased Avengers who join forces with the only surviving Avenger — the Hulk — to battle Ultron. While he was introduced in Next Avengers, the writer/artist team of Brian Michael Bendis and John Romita Jr. brought Azari and his teammates into the comics starting with 2010’s Avengers #1. However, Azari and the other Next Avengers were part of an alternate future timeline. While T’Challa and Storm were married for a time in the prime Marvel timeline, they did not have any children.
If the report from Cosmic Circus is to be believed, then it brings up a lot of questions as to when Black Panther 2 will be set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Assuming the sequel doesn’t take an even larger leap into the future, in order for T’Challa’s son to be older than an infant he would need to have been conceived before the events of Avengers: Infinity War and born during the 5 years between that film and most of Avengers: Endgame. While it’s not out of the realm of possibility, it would seem strange for Nakia and T’Challa to have conceived a child in that time, particularly since shortly before the events of Infinity War, the pair agree to not become romantically entangled.
Whatever the case, we should know in about a year. Black Panther 2, aka Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, will release in theaters November 11, 2022. The film was originally scheduled to drop in July but it — along with most of Marvel’s post-2021 film slate — was pushed back. Black Panther 2 took the release slot originally being held for The Marvels, which instead will now release in February 2023.
