Small Details You Missed In The Official Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Trailer
The first official trailer for "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" has dropped — not to be confused with the first official teaser — and we're taking a much deeper dive into Namor (Tenoch Huerta) and his kingdom. The trailer still highlights Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa, and how his family and loved ones mourn him. There are plenty of new action sequences we didn't see in the teaser and a better look into the underwater world of Talocan. Namor rules over Atlantis in the comics, but the film will change that, according to Huerta.
Wakandan women are also spotlighted in the trailer, with extended looks at Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), Okoye (Danai Gurira), Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), and Aneka (Michaela Coel). M'Baku (Winston Duke) is also featured more than his brief appearance in the teaser and gives a speech about Namor that hints at how powerful the anti-hero is. There is so much going on in this trailer, so we're breaking it down and examining the biggest takeaways, so you don't have to.
Fleet-footed Namor
At the 0:56 mark of the trailer, we get a great look at Namor in all his winged-foot glory. He's introduced via a voiceover from M'Baku and will serve as the film's primary antagonist (maybe). Marvel Studios decided to give the character a Mayan spin for his MCU introduction. Namor's updated look for the MCU looks incredible, and the inclusion of his winged feet is enough to get any fans of the Sub-Mariner excited.
M'Baku reveals that Namor is called K'uk'ulkan, the feather serpent god, and says that killing him would risk eternal war. In the comics, Wakanda and Atlantis never see eye-to-eye, and it looks like "Wakanda Forever" perfectly sets up that relationship.
In the comics, he is the son of a human sea captain, an Atlantean princess, and is the current King of Atlantis. Because of his human father, he doesn't share the same blue-tinted skin as most Atlanteans. His powers include underwater breathing, superhuman strength, and flying using the wings on his feet. Because of his first publication date, he is sometimes considered Marvel's first mutant. Huerta confirmed to Empire that the character is a mutant in "Wakanda Forever."
Riri Williams gets to work
In a movie about the rebirth of a superhero alias and the introduction of one of the most famous anti-heroes, we're also getting the unveiling of a brand-new hero as well. In a quick shot in the trailer for "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," viewers can see an individual rooting through piles of parts that might look familiar to MCU fans. This is none other than Riri Williams, who will later be known as Ironheart for her abilities and source of power, which is a reversed-engineered Iron Man suit.
This is a fitting character to be introduced in "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," considering that the mantle of Black Panther has also changed hands. According to Marvel, in the comics, Williams is a genius-level intellect by age five. She crafts her own Iron Man suit after reverse engineering pieces from the Iron Man Mark 41 armor design. Chances are, Williams will be able to construct this new exoskeleton in the "Black Panther" sequel from the wreckage created by the battle between Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) and the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) in "Avengers: Age of Ultron." By the end of the trailer, we see Williams' Ironheart persona in flight, so it doesn't look like it will take her long to step up to the proverbial Iron Man plate. One thing is for sure: fans will soon be treated to yet another genius in a weaponized suit of armor capable of flight and energy blasts.
Attuma in action
We got a small glimpse at Attuma in the first teaser for "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," where he appeared on a bridge ready to fight presumably Okoye. We're getting a better look at that moment in the trailer, where the villain launches himself into the air before slamming down on the bridge. Attuma's inclusion in the Phase 4 film is very important, as the character is the archnemesis of Namor in the comics. We fully expect to see a battle for power between the two.
The history between Namor and Attuma is lengthy, and there is any number of stories we could see adapted into the new movie. With Namor being more of an anti-hero than an outright villain, we might see Attuma play a little more of the bad guy role than his nemesis counterpart. Attuma plans to flood the surface world in the comics, and since we see Wakanda getting flushed out in the teaser, perhaps it was all his doing and not Namors. Marvel Studios does love to throw red herrings our way all the time.
All signs point to Shuri
And finally, we get a "Black Panther" throwback in the trailer's final moment when the new mantle wearer does their superhero landing from high above. While it's not fully confirmed in the preview who is behind the mask, all clues (and recent LEGO releases) point to it being T'Challa's sister, Shuri. The only question is how she will handle the new role and the throne that could potentially come with it.
While this will clearly be a movie in mourning going through the loss of a great hero (and the icon that played him), it feels that the passing of the torch to Wright's character will be an intriguing one as she grieves her older brother and the tall shadow he leaves behind. As Namor says at the beginning of this new trailer, "Only the most broken people can be great leaders," certifying that Shuri will undoubtedly fit the bill. With that in mind, though, how long will it be in the film before she steps into the role and takes up the legendary mantle? And will it be enough to take on the first-ever mutant and his own people? We'll have to wait and find out when "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" arrives in theatres on November 11.