Chadwick Boseman’s surviving brother has reportedly agreed that the iconic character T’Challa of the blockbuster film Black Panther should be recast and played by another actor.
Derrick Boseman told TMZ that he wants the role to live on so he can continue to inspire fans around the world. He was responding to an online petition that wants to have the title role continue. So far, more than 43K people have signed the petition started by film critic Emmanuel “E-Man” Noisette.
“If Marvel Studios removes T’Challa, it would be at the expense of the audiences (especially Black boys and men) who saw themselves in him. That also includes the millions of fans who were inspired by the character as well,” Noisette pleaded on Change.org.
“This petition is merely asking to continue the portrayal of T’Challa in the MCU. #RecastTChalla is a call to fulfill the role that Chadwick Boseman worked so hard for the world to see.”
These fans are responding to Marvel VP of Development Nate Moore who said the company is not inclined to recast Boseman’s character for the Black Panther sequel or sequels, nor for the Ringer-Verse podcast.
“I’m being quite honest: You will not see T’Challa in the MCU 616 universe,” Moore said following Boseman’s passing in August 2020, according to People. “We couldn’t do it.”
Moore also said that “when Chad passed, it was a real conversation we had with [director Ryan] Coogler about, ‘What do we do?’ and it was a fast conversation. It wasn’t weeks, it was minutes of we had to figure out how to move that franchise on without that character. Because I think we all feel so much of T’Challa in the MCU on the screen … is tied to Chadwick’s performance.”
