Black Panther 2 Director Explains How They Chose T’Challa’s MCU Ending

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever director Ryan Coogler explains why they chose for T’Challa to die by illness in the movie. The passing of Chadwick Boseman is still felt by those who had the pleasure to work with him in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The fact that he kept going despite battling colon cancer is a testament to how committed he was to the character. Boseman’s tragic passing led to the retooling of the Black Panther sequel, with Coogler’s new goal of honoring his legacy. Many thought T’Challa would die heroically offscreen in the movie, but when Black Panther: Wakanda Forever finally hit theaters, it was revealed that T’Challa tragically died from an incurable illness.

While speaking with The New York Times, Coogler and writer Joe Robert Cole explained that T’Challa’s death had to affect Shuri (Letitia Wright) and give her motivation to continue on and become the next Black Panther. Once they knew that she would be their new lead, Coogler and Cole had an idea of where the film should go, with Coogler referring to it as “the transformative quality of grief and trauma.” He felt that having someone else kill T’Challa would have changed the overall tone and message of the film. Read Coogler and Cole’s quotes below:

Just practically, everyone was going to be waiting to see how we dealt with it, so doing it right up front made sense. In terms of the characters, we needed to introduce a different version of Shuri. We’re showing the moment that she becomes a different person than the person we met. She’s the smartest person in the world, but she can’t save her brother. What does that do to you?… If somebody else would’ve taken T’Challa out, Shuri would’ve looked for that person. We wanted it to be a situation where the only place to go was internal.

Why Having T’Chlla Die In Battle Would Have Been The Wrong Choice

Prior to Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Marvel Studios did not have any qualms about recasting characters. Mark Ruffalo ultimately replaced Edward Norton as Bruce Banner due to creative differences, while Don Cheadle replaced Terrence Howard as Rhodes, supposedly due to a pay dispute. With the upcoming Thunderbolts movie, Harrison Ford is set to replace William Hurt in the role of General Ross due to the actor’s death. The decision to not recast T’Challa for the same reason might seem peculiar, but it’s proven to be a testament as to how Boseman was important in bringing the character to life and why it would’ve been difficult to carry on with another actor.

Having T’Challa die in battle not only would have changed the course of Shuri’s journey in the film, but it also would have repeated a storyline that was already explored in Captain America: Civil War. In the prior movie, T’Chaka, T’Challa and Shuri’s father, is killed in an explosion that was set up by Helmut Zemo in an effort to frame Bucky Barnes and drive the Avengers further apart. Near the end of the film, T’Challa learns the truth and decides to give up on revenge in favor of justice by capturing Zemo. For Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Shuri needed to have her own path and not just repeat the same lesson that was explored with her brother, leading to a unique experience.

While it is unfortunate that fans and audiences will not get to see the original version of the film with T’Challa in the lead, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever took the opportunity to put Shuri front and center and tell a new story with her. The film successfully honored Boseman and gave fans and audiences a movie that not only respected him but also gave a hopeful note for the future. The introduction of T’Challa and Nakia’s son Toussaint opened the doors for future potential stories and assured fans that Marvel will never forget how Boseman helped shape the MCU into what it is today.