How The Cast Of Black Panther 2 Honored Chadwick Boseman While Filming

The loss of Chadwick Boseman in 2020 was felt throughout the world. Plans for the Black Panther sequel were thrown into chaos and the filmmakers and those at Marvel wanted to honor their actor and friend the best way they could. Shortly after his death, it was announced that Marvel and director Ryan Coogler would not recast the role, or use a digital likeness.

Talking to Gamespot at this year's Comic-Con, several returning cast, and a few new additions, spoke about how they took the memory of Boseman and how it inspired the filming but said that even though he was gone, he was never far away.

"Filming this we had so much grief day to day," said Winston Duke, who plays M'Baku in both Black Panther movies. "We had to feel that grief because the grief we're feeling is what the characters are feeling as well."

Duke added that there was never a specific day that they set aside to honor Boseman, but a continual feeling throughout the production. "It was every living moment. So if anybody has their own feelings about how it should be done, I'll tell you it was done and it was done with great integrity from the people--some of the people--who knew him best in this context."

Florence Kasumba, who plays Ayo, said that this film carries Boseman's optimism. "You know what he brought to the MCU and it was an honor to work with him and I learned so much from him. This one is positive and optimistic and that's the tone of the movie."

A recent addition to the cast, Alex Livinalli who plays Atlantean warlord Attuma, talked about how his presence was felt throughout the whole film and what it meant for him to join the cast. "Whether we were shooting or not shooting the cast or the crew...a lot of the crew was the returning crew from the first and throughout the whole shoot, you would hear stories with how Chad would deal with scenes. He also said he opened a lot of doors, he opened a lot of doors for us," he said to actress Mabel Cadena, who plays Namora.

"You can see his shadow on the walls," said Tenoch Huerta, "and it was outlined with colors and music." He was invited to join and contribute to that piece and put his hand on his shadow. "It's wonderful. What more can I say?"

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hits theaters on November 11.