Ever since the world of Wakanda was first teased in the Marvel Cinematic Universe back in 2015, audiences have been hungry for the stories of Black Panther – an African king, an Avenger, and the gateway to an entire mythology steeped in cultural specificities rarely explored in Hollywood. And 2018’s Black Panther was an undeniable gamechanger, bringing Wakanda and its people to vivid life – all led with power and purpose by the legendary Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa, the Black Panther himself. But before director Ryan Coogler began shooting his much-anticipated sequel, the unthinkable happened – Boseman passed away from cancer, and filmmakers and fans alike were left to reckon with his loss. Out of that grief rises Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, an impossible sequel that explores the legacy of T’Challa while paying tribute to the late, great Boseman.
In the new issue of Empire, we take a major, world-exclusive dive into a film that comes freighted with considerable expectations, with all the odds stacked against it. Inside, we speak to Ryan Coogler and his cast – including the women of Wakanda, Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong’o, Danai Gurira and Angela Bassett; the returning Winston Duke; plus newcomers Dominique Thorne and Tenoch Huerta – as well as producer Nate Moore and Marvel boss Kevin Feige. Get the full story on a film that’s many things at once: an epic, triumphant return to Wakanda; the much-anticipated arrival of Namor and Ironheart in the MCU; and a personal paean to a man whose passing continues to be felt the world over. All that, and it’s packed with plenty of exclusive new images from the movie too.
This month’s newsstand cover features Letitia Wright’s Shuri, Angela Bassett’s Queen Ramonda, and Tenoch Huerta’s Namor, ready to usher in a new age of Wakanda.
And our subscriber cover – as with our original BlackPanther subscriber cover from 2018 – comes courtesy of the film’s legendary production designer Hannah Beachler, featuring Namor’s fearsome headdress created in collage, constructed from imagery that inspired the look and feel of Wakanda Forever.
All that, plus we click with Tim Burton on his Addams Family series Wednesday, the incredible Park Chan-wook writes exclusively for Empire on the making of his new romantic thriller Decision To Leave, Martin McDonagh and his stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson sit down to talk The Banshees Of Inisherin, we get seriously weird with Weird star Daniel Radcliffe, prepare to say farewell to Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor Who era with a first look at her finale, present a major new interview and shoot with Lashana Lynch, and much more.
It’s a huge new issue, and your first access to a film that looks to be beautifully cathartic, deeply emotional, and a blockbuster spectacle in true MCU style. Wakanda – and Chadwick Boseman – forever, and ever.
Find Empire’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever issue on newsstands from Thursday 29 September, or pre-order a copy online here now. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will arrive in UK cinemas from 11 November.