Black Panther 3 is ready to claw its way into theaters.
Kevin Feige and director Ryan Coogler announced during Marvel Studios‘ panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday that the sequel feature will film on 70mm and hit theaters Dec. 15, 2028. The duo also revealed that David Jonsson is set to star as an adult version of the son of T’Challa, portrayed by the late Chadwick Boseman in the 2018 original.
“Thank you to this amazing family that I have the honor and privilege and the blessing to join,” Jonsson said from the stage as the audience screamed and cheered, with some sections breaking out in Wakanda chants. He will don the mantle of the Black Panther for the film.
The actor is a recent Hollywood breakout, with key roles in Alien: Romulus and The Long Walk. Jonsson was also part of the main cast for the first two seasons of Industry.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever ended with the revelation that Boseman’s T’Challa had a young son with Lupita Nyong’o’s Nakia. Given that this is Marvel, it’s possible that some sort of time jump or other factors are involved to age him up for the sequel. The film also will come after next year’s Avengers: Secret Wars and will likely affect the larger MCU.
The Black Panther film franchise kicked off with the 2018 title, starring Boseman as T’Challa. With a cast that included Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke and Angela Bassett, the film was a smash hit, collecting $1.3 billion at the global box office and becoming the first superhero feature to land an Academy Award nomination for best picture.
Boseman was set to reprise his lead role in a planned sequel before his death in 2020 after a private battle with colon cancer. The follow-up film’s focus shifted to Wright’s character, Shuri, taking up the mantle of Black Panther following the death of brother T’Challa. The sequel, Wakanda Forever, hit theaters in 2022 and surpassed $850 million at the worldwide box office. It won an Oscar from five nominations, with Bassett becoming the first performer nominated for an Academy Award for a performance in a Marvel movie.
Among the highlights of this year’s Marvel panel at SDCC included Ryan Gosling taking the stage to reveal his role as Ghost Rider in a forthcoming feature from Shawn Levy, his director for next year’s Star Wars: Starfighter.