‘Wakanda Forever’: Hannah Beachler On Creating Namor’s Talokan World

It has been apparent in talking to Oscar voters across many branches that the one title that keeps coming up at the top of their lists is Netflix’s All Quiet on the Western Front, which is the German entry for International Feature Film. That it has strength across the board though is borne out with the Oscar shortlists in 10 categories released Wednesday by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.

The Black Reel Awards has revealed its nominations for their 23rd Annual ceremony.

**Spoilers below for “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” You’ve been warned…** Though it’s unlikely Letitia Wright will get any major awards nominations for her performance in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” it isn’t for lack of quality and effort. The young actress clearly puts every bit of herself into her role as Shuri, the new Black Panther and protector of Wakanda.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever co-writer/director Ryan Coogler joined Deadline’s Contenders LA3C panel to reflect on the impact of the untimely passing of Chadwick Boseman and the sensitive display of Black motherhood. 

What happens when there’s no wide theatrical releases and it’s the holiday season as we emerge from the pandemic? Why, you get the second-lowest box office weekend of the year at an estimated $37.2M. We’ll see if Saturday night business is so bad that that this weekend becomes the lowest of 2022, unseating that of Jan. 28-30, when all movies grossed $34.87M, per Comscore.

**Spoilers ahead for “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” You’ve been warned.** In a long, epic film about grief and loss, one of the most emotional moments in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” comes at the very end. In the mid-credits scene, it is revealed that T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) and Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) actually had a kid off-screen, and he’s been living with Nakia in Haiti, away from Wakanda and his place in the kingdom.

In its third weekend, Disney/Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever continued to reign at the global and international box office. With a $32.1M offshore frame (-53%), the sequel has an overseas total of $308M for $675.6M worldwide through Sunday.

After three weeks in theaters, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” has made $363 million domestically, over $600 million worldwide, and it looks like it’s going to be Marvel’s second biggest hit of the year following “Doctor Strange & The Multiverse Of Madness.” The film is full of action, grief, and emotion and, of course, is highlighted by a classic Marvel character that fans have wanted to see onscreen for decades: Namor, The Submariner (played by Tenoch Huerta).

*Be warned, major spoilers ahead for “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”* Marvel’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” is expected to cross $600 million at the global box office this weekend. And it’s really quite the feat that co-writer/director Ryan Coogler was able to pull off, given the heartbreaking development process after losing actor Chadwick Boseman and trying to get the massive film completed while honoring his memory.

Cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw was one of the most sought-after names at the recent Camerimage film festival, with both fans and industry colleagues flocking to hear her speak at a post-screening Q&A.

There’s a special place at cowriter/director Ryan Coogler’s table and in his heart for those who supported Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

It’s not like people weren’t going to the cinema yesterday as we head toward Thanksgiving: Disney/Marvel Studios’ Black Panther: Wakanda Forever made $9.5M on Tuesday propelling the Ryan Coogler-directed sequel past the the three century mark with $303.7M, making it the 7th film to pass that threshold this year after Top Gun: Maverick, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Jurassic World: Dominion, Minions: The Rise of Gru, The Batman and Thor: Love and Thunder.

Call it a holiday tradition as common as sweet potatoes on the Thanksgiving table, but Disney is going to rule the five-day holiday stretch again after wins in 2016 (Moana), 2017 (Coco), 2018 (Ralph Breaks the Internet), 2019 (Frozen 2) and last year (Encanto), as Black Panther: Wakanda Forever‘s third weekend looks to do $40M over Wednesday-Sunday and Disney Animation’s Strange World hopes to squeeze out $30M+. All of this occurs as Bob Iger is re-installed as the CEO of Disney and the studio’s distribution czar Kareem Daniel exits.

After Chadwick Boseman‘s tragic death in 2020, MCU fans wondered who would take over the Black Panther mantle for the actor in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.”  Marvel Studios did a good job keeping it secret, but now that the film’s in theaters, the secret’s out.  Letitia Wright‘s Shuri became the new Black Panther in Wakanda’s battle against Namor the Sub-Mariner in the sequel to Ryan Coogler‘s 2018 film.

Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles welcomed a record 29 of the year’s buzziest movies from 14 studios and streamers live on stage Saturday at the DGA Theater. A crowd of key Academy and key guild voters took in the all-day affair, hearing from the stars and creatives behind the movies that are making noise this awards season. Now you can hear from them too.