The tragic death of actor Chadwick Boseman understandably led to some seismic changes being made to Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. That came after Marvel Studios chose not to recast T'Challa, with the sequel's focus shifting to Shuri dealing with her brother's death and the pressures that come with inheriting the Black Panther mantle.
During the course of the movie, Okoye loses her status as the leader of the Dora Milaje after Shuri is taken to Talokan. Queen Ramonda strips the warrior of her title, but the hero later returns in the final act when Shuri outfits her with Midnight Angel armour.
Talking to Deadline, actress Danai Gurira revealed that Black Panther: Wakanda Forever director Ryan Coogler once had a very different ending in mind for Okoye.
"[There's] another key one of mine, which is really my character saying bye to Shuri and she just catches her in Haiti unexpectedly, and Shuri's like, 'Are you going back to the Dora?' and my character says no," the actress recalls. "And she said, 'Where are you going to go?' and I was like, 'Wherever my blue suit takes me,' and she just walks off."
"And they have the beautiful moment, and then she just walks off. [Coogler] was saying it's like that kung fu show, where the guy just walked the earth. She just walks off. We don't know where Okoye's going. And she's sort of letting go. She was fighting to keep that position, and then she lets it go. That's kind of her arc, that she lets go. And we don't know where that leads to."
This would have been a cool way to wrap up Okoye's story, and a fun way to lay the groundwork for the rumoured Wakanda-set Disney+ spin-off. We don't know what the plan is for that, of course, and would assume the plan now is for Okoye to lead a new group of warriors who look out for her nation's interests during future appearances.
Gurira has a busy few years ahead of her, anyway, with the actress set to reprise the role of Michonne in an upcoming offshoot of The Walking Dead revolving around her and Andrew Lincoln's Rick Grimes.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is now playing in theaters.