Chadwick Boseman was a phenomenal Black Panther but Michael B. Jordan gave him a run for his money as the villainous Eric Killmonger. The character eventually died in battle with T'Challa but returned as a Variant in What If...? and in the Ancestral Plane in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Before Letitia Wright's Shuri inherited the Black Panther mantle, many fans wondered if Marvel Studios might find a way to retcon Eric's death and have him find redemption as his cousin's replacement.
That didn't happen but, according to a new report from The Cosmic Circus, "Michael B. Jordan may be returning for one of the upcoming Avengers films." The site strongly hints that he'll suit up as "Black Panther" in either Avengers: Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars, an undeniably intriguing development.
Interestingly, it sounds like Marvel Studios has moved away from the idea of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine invading Wakanda for its Vibranium reserves, primarily because Captain America: Brave New World is delivering a similar story with Tiamut Island and Adamantium.
"It's tough, I think this time around, because we lost our brother Chadwick – rest in peace to Chadwick Boseman – it was so much weight, to power through," Jordan previously said of his MCU return in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
"And [director] Ryan Coogler had such a tremendous task in front of him to evolve the script and the story in a way that still kind of honoured Chadwick but moved the franchise forward as well."
"So for me to be able to come back – and I really had to keep it under wraps, I had to grow my hair out. You know, I got the locks back in and stuff like that," the actor continued. "And I’m traveling a lot of places, so I’ve got to wear a hat, a hoodie, fly private, which isn’t too bad of a thing. But being able to keep it under wraps was really a tough thing."
Killmonger's What If...? Variant is out there somewhere and, seeing as he's wielded the Infinity Stones, it would be a lot of fun watching what that version of the character brings to the table.
Remember, when Doctor Doom creates "Battleworld" in the Secret Wars comic, it rewrites reality, so that could see a villainous Black Panther like Killmonger become the new King of Wakanda (in the post-Secret Wars MCU, we expect the young T'Challa to grow up and inherit the mantle).
Avengers: Doomsday is set to be released in May 2026, with Avengers: Secret Wars scheduled to arrive in May 2027.