The sequel to the blockbuster film Black Panther has been temporally shut down due to the severity of an injury sustained by one of the film’s stars Letitia Wright. Wright was injured in late August while Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was shooting a sequence involving a stunt rig on-location in Boston. When the incident occurred, Marvel Studios said Wright’s injury would ultimately not impact the shooting schedule of the film.
After the injury, Wright left for London, where she has been recuperating while the production shot around her character, Shuri. Shuri is the sister of Black Panther T’Challa which was played by Chadwick Boseman. When Boseman died from colon cancer in August 2020, Wright’s character was elevated as the lead of the sequel.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever had been filming mostly in Atlanta for the last two months. According to Variety, director Ryan Coogler shot all footage that his crew was able to without Wright. The hiatus is expected to begin the week of Thanksgiving and restart in 2022 after they reconfigure their shooting plans.
“Letitia has been recovering in London since September from injuries sustained on the set of Black Panther 2 and is looking forward to returning to work early 2022,” a representative for Wright said in a statement to Variety. “Letitia kindly asks that you keep her in your prayers.”
Danai Gurira, Daniel Kaluuya, Winston Duke, Lupita Nyong’o, Florence Kasumba, and Angela Bassett are all returning for the sequel as well. During Disney’s Investor Day last December, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige announced that in honor of Boseman, his title role as the Wakandan superhero would not be recast. Instead, the film “will explore the world of Wakanda and the rich characters introduced in the first film,” Feige said.
Marvel already pushed back the release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in October, moving it from July 8, 2022, to Nov. 11, 2022. The new release date has not changed.
