Warning: If you haven't seen Black Panther: Wakanda Forever yet, major spoilers follow from this point on.
Ryan Coogler's Black Panther sequel opens with Shuri (Letitia Wright) racing against the clock to save T'Challa by attempting to replicate the Heart-Shaped Herb. Unfortunately, her efforts are in vain, and her brother dies from his unnamed illness.
This leaves Shuri devastated, but the hard times are not over for the future Black Panther.
In a somewhat surprising move given the heartbreak Shuri and her family had already suffered, Ramonda (Angela Bassett) also joins her ancestors when Namor (Tenoch Huerta) makes good on his word to come to Wakanda and take the Queen's life. As her heroic final act, Ramonda sacrifices herself to save Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) after the Submariner floods the throne room.
While chatting to IndieWire, Bassett revealed that she wasn't completely om board with Coogler decision to kill-off her character
"I objected. Yeah, I was like, "Ryan, what are you doing? Why? You will rue the day! You will rue the demise of [Ramonda]. People are gonna be so upset." He was like, "Angela, I know, I know, but look, to die is not really to die in this world. It doesn’t really have to mean that."
Does this mean Ramonda could return? Well, she does show up again towards the end of the movie when she appears from the Ancestral Place to stop her daughter from allowing vengeance to consume her by killing Namor, so there's always a chance Bassett could be given the opportunity to reprise the role in future Black Panther films.
There's a lot of buzz surrounding the What's Love Got To Do With It star's powerful performance, and she is hotly tipped for her second Academy Award nomination. If she does land the nom, she'll be the first actor from a Marvel Studios movie to receive the accolade.
Have you been to see Black Panther: Wakanda Forever yet? If so, be sure to let us know what you thought of the movie in the comments section (you can check out our review here).
In Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M’Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira), and the Dora Milaje (including Florence Kasumba), fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T’Challa’s death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda. Introducing Tenoch Huerta as Namor, king of a hidden undersea nation, the film also stars Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Mabel Cadena, and Alex Livanalli.