Riri Williams debuts in a powerful celebration of warrior women

It’s safe to say Black Panther: Wakanda Forever becomes an emotional watch. The sequel to Marvel’s hugely successful, most critically acclaimed film of all time has taken five years to complete. During that time, it was hit by an unprecedented setback: lead actor Chadwick Boseman, himself known as Prince T’Challa (Black Panther), died of cancer in 2020. Production on the sequel hadn’t started yet.

Losing your star is never easy, especially when he’s playing a role deeply entrenched in the greatest film franchise of all time. But director Ryan Coogler seems to have used that deep sadness to create something cathartic, not just mournful. The film’s latest trailer, released on Monday, is a stunning preview of how it will fill the Boseman-sized hole. Wakanda forever is a film revolving around the women of Wakanda – T’Challa’s beloved family, who are taking the mantle in his stead.

It’s emotional from the start, as T’Challa’s iconic mask is worn in a funeral procession. A mural of his face now stands tall in Wakanda; The nation is dressed in white as a sign of their mourning.

But then things quickly get back to business for Queen Mother Ramonda (Angela Bassett, real queen), her daughter Shuri (Letitia Wright) and Okoye (Danai Gurira). With T’Challa dead, the villain Namor, leader of the Talocan underwater civilization, has an opportunity to strike. “Only the most broken people can be great leaders,” he says offscreen. And while he’s talking about himself, we realize the same goes for Wakanda’s remaining royals.

The Wakandans set out to fight the invading Talocan to preserve their utopian kingdom. “We know you whisper, ‘You lost your protector,'” says Ramonda. But she is quick to remind her people: “Now is our time to strike. Show them who we are.”

Cut to lots of hand-to-hand combat, car chases, high-tech weapons, and even two new heroes: Shuri in a Black Panther suit and Ironheart, aka Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne), who comics fans know as the female sequel to Iron Man. This will be her debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

No matter where Wakanda forever exits the franchise, it’s clear that it has strong characters at the helm – a group of incredibly inspiring female warriors. While that can’t undo the pain of losing Boseman, it does remind us that there’s still hope for the future.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever opens in cinemas on November 11th.