ET spoke to the cast of the upcoming 'Black Panther' sequel at Comic-Con Saturday.
Chadwick Boseman's legacy is living on through Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. ET's Matt Cohen spoke to the stars of the Marvel sequel at Comic-Con 2022 in San Diego over the weekend, where they shared how the second film carries on what the late actor started.
"Something about the alchemy that Ryan Coogler puts together, and I think it starts at the top, right?" Lupita Nyong’o said of the family director Ryan Coogler has created through his Black Panther casting. "He sets a certain tone, certain culture on set, that it's all-hands-on-deck. It's teamwork, it's familial, it's intimate. And you go kinda through the fire together, and Lord, there were fires. So, it brings us all together."
To see the result of their hard work on the big screen, together as a family in the film's first teaser trailer, released at Comic-Con Saturday, was a moving moment, Nyong'o added.
"And then to see the fruits of our labor up there, and they're bigger than any of us -- we are all little, little pieces of the puzzle, but then to see it all together, it's very, very moving," She continued. "And to see what it means to an audience. There's something visceral about this particular story that brings us to tears."
It's a family that really cares, Letitia Wright noted -- one that is committed to not only honoring Boseman's legacy but carrying on his story in the sequel.
"It's definitely a family, it was a family from the very beginning," Wright agreed. "The family has extended a little bit, we have new members, but like Lupita said, it's a great alignment of souls and people who really care and people who really want to honor the legacy that we are trying to carry on of what Chadwick started, and we're really just grateful to have each other."
Winston Duke echoed a similar sentiment, explaining the Black Panther family while speaking to ET. He says that what audiences see on screen and at Comic-Con, is how the group expresses their grief over losing "one of their cohorts" and a "really great friend."
"The magic of Black Panther is really deeply rooted in the sense of family and the collective," Duke shared. "And the collective gets to express the individual -- the individual pain, the individual trials, the individual, things that they go through. Art really reflects life here, life really reflects the art. So, you get to see us as a collective, expressing our individual grief over losing one of our cohorts, one of our collaborators and a really great friend. And it was very emotional."
While the trailer for the film -- slated to hit theaters Nov. 11 -- revealed that someone will assume the mantle of the superhero’s responsibilities, the cast was tight-lipped on how the story moves on without Boseman, who died unexpectedly in August 2020, following a private battle with cancer.
"We do it," Nyong'o said when asked how the film movies forward without its lead. "We do move forward."
"And we do it well," Wright added. "We do it with love and care and style."
Nyong'o, Wright and more members of the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever cast appeared alongside Coogler and Marvel President Kevin Feige, for the film's emotional first look at San Diego Convention Center's Hall H, before diving into what fans can expect from the sequel.
"It's been 5 years since I was here," Coogler said as he took the stage, remembering previous events with Boseman, to massive applause from the crowd. "Standing with you here right now... I can feel his hand on me now."
"Chad is no longer with us physically, but his spirit, his pride and culture and his impact on the industry will be felt forever," he continued.
Written and directed by Coogler, the sequel, starring Nyong'o, Wright, Duke, Danai Gurira, Angela Bassett, Florence Kasumba, Martin Freeman, Michaela Coel, and more, will "continue to explore the incomparable world of Wakanda and all of the rich and varied characters introduced in the first film."
See below for more of Entertainment Tonight’s ongoing coverage of Comic-Con 2022, including the daily schedule and biggest highlights of the weekend.
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