This probably won't come as much of a surprise after the first film landed a Best Picture nomination, but Marvel Studios has now officially put Black Panther: Wakanda Forever forward for consideration in "all categories" at the upcoming Academy Awards.
The studio kicked-off the sequel's Oscar campaign with a "for your consideration poster" featuring Queen Ramonda and some of the praise critics have been heaping on the movie since it hit theaters earlier this month.
Angela Bassett has been hotly tipped to land a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her powerful performance as T'Challa's grieving mother.
Of course, studios put movies forward for consideration all the time and nothing comes of it, so this far from guarantees that Wakanda Forever will receive any recognition. As well as finding major success at the box office, its predecessor made a huge impact on the cultural zeitgeist, and the Academy may simply have viewed it as too important to ignore.
Superhero films don't tend to get much love at the Oscars, but maybe lightning will strike twice for Black Panther?
What do you guys think? Would you like to see Wakanda Forever land a Best Picture nom? What about Bassett's chances? Be sure to let us know 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.