Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the sequel to the groundbreaking 2018 film, Black Panther, has paused production after star Letitia Wright suffered an injury on set. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 28-year-old actress, who leads as Shuri, was injured in August while shooting a sequence involving a stunt rig on location in Boston. Initially, Marvel Studios projected the injury would not delay production.
“Letitia has been recovering in London since September from injuries sustained on the set of Black Panther 2 and is looking forward to returning to work early 2022,” a representative for Wright said in a statement. “Letitia kindly asks that you keep her in your prayers.”
Wakanda Forever began filming over the summer in Atlanta. According to the report, director Ryan Coogler has shot all footage that his crew is able to produce without Wright for the time being. The pause in production is set to begin during the week of Thanksgiving. While brief, the delay is not the only postponement related to the highly-anticipated film.
The film’s release date has been delayed due to production schedule changes. Initially slated to hit theaters on July 8, 2022, the world of Wakanda will not be revised until Nov. 11 of that same year. Wakanda Forever will be the final Marvel movie to be released in 2022, following the fourth Thor film, Thor: Love and Thunder, which has been pushed to the July 8, 2022 date from a projected May 6, 2022.
According to THR, the November release date for the Black Panther sequel has not changed even after the injury-induced break. Fans of the franchise are eager to watch the story of Wakanda and Black Panther unfold. After the death of lead actor Chadwick Boseman, the cast and crew have assured the film is being created with proper care.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is reportedly set to star Lupita Nyong’o, returning in her role as Nakia, Danai Gurira who played Okoye, general of the Dora Milaje, Winston Duke as M’Baku leader of the Jabari Tribe, and Daniel Kaluuya as W’Kabi, the former head of security for Wakanda’s Border Tribe.
“But at the same time, we have a leader in Ryan, who feels very much like we do, who feels the loss in a very, very real way as well,” Nyong’o shared during a May interview. “And his idea, the way which he has reshaped the second movie is so respectful of the loss we’ve all experienced as a cast and as a world. So it feels spiritually and emotionally correct to do this. And hopefully, what I do look forward to, is getting back together and honoring what he started with us and holding his light through it. Because he left us a lot of light that we’re still going to be bathing in. I know that for sure.”