The news that actor Chadwick Boseman had died following a lengthy battle with cancer shocked the world. An outpouring of grief followed, though there were many who wondered what this meant for the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Black Panther.
Boseman put the character on the map and made T'Challa an inspiration to countless people across the globe, so it was understandable that the hero's future was being discussed.
Would Marvel Studios recast the character or retire him? There were arguments for both options, though the trailers for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever have made it clear that he's been killed off (the circumstances behind T'Challa's demise have not yet been revealed).
As a result, a different hero will take over the mantle, but when T'Challa struck a chord with so many, why wasn't a new actor enlisted to pick up where Boseman left off?
"I don’t know if anything about it was an easy decision," Marvel Studios producer Nate Moore tells Total Film. "But it was a decision that, once made, we all believed in, and it led us on a path forward."
“I could not imagine turning to the best young actor in the world who wasn’t Chadwick, and being like, ‘Okay, so you’re T’Challa.’ I could not, and cannot, imagine that. I really couldn’t. Other people will have a different answer to that question. And we’re very aware of the talkback, and how people feel. And I think all of that, to be quite honest, is fair."
"Everybody’s going to have a different opinion. I can just say, after being in it, I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t get there."
It's understandable, and while it's a shame T'Challa's story has ended, the hope now is that whoever takes over the Black Panther role - likely Letitia Wright's Shuri - will be just as inspirational as Boseman. The upcoming sequel certainly looks like a very special movie, anyway.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever arrives in theaters on November 11.