Black Panther and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever director Ryan Coogler has always said that he'd be more than happy to stay on board the franchise and return to helm a third film, and a new rumor is now claiming that he's signed on to do just that.
However, Marvel Studios might be eyeing the filmmaker for another upcoming MCU project!
According to MyTimeToShineHello, the studio wants Coogler to take the helm of the planned X-Men reboot. This follows a previous rumor that a POC was being sought for the project, and we have heard that Mufasa: The Lion King director Barry Jenkins may also be on Marvel's radar.
Wakanda Forever served as a fitting tribute to T'Challa and the late Chadwick Boseman while establishing Shuri as the new Panther and introducing an entire aquatic civilization. The mid-credits scene also featured the debut of T'Challa's son, who will almost certainly take over as Wakanda's King and protector someday.
So, it's fair to say the movie set-up quite a few things that could potentially be explored in future sequels.
During a 2022 interview with the New York Times, Coogler admitted that he'd be glad to stay on this franchise for "as long as folks will have me."
"I feel blessed that I have the opportunity to work on these movies, bro. When I got asked to do the first one, it was like a moving train. I thank God every day that I was able to jump on it and meet these people, these actors, and to meet Chadwick during some of the last years of his life. I’ll do it as long as folks will have me. But I think it’s bigger than just me or Joe. Between the first and second movie, we made $2 billion at the box office, which is what matters the most to corporations. So I hope that it continues, man. I hope people are still making movies about Wakanda long after we’re gone."
As for the X-Men, a writer is expected to be announced soon, and we'd have no problem believing that Kevin Feige and co. would want a director of Coogler's calibre to bring the mutant heroes back to the big screen - though that doesn't necessarily mean he'd be interested.
Coogler is currently shooting his untitled vampire movie starring Michael B. Jordan, and is also producing a number of Disney+ MCU projects, as well as the X-Files reboot. If he has indeed signed on to direct Black Panther 3, he may think twice about adding another massive franchise film to his already stacked workload.
What do you think? Would you like to see Ryan Coogler helm the X-Men reboot? Drop us a comment down below.