In a recent interview, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’s writer revealed that multiple characters were considered for taking on the title of Black Panther.

Following the death of actor Chadwick Boseman in 2020, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever had to undergo some changes, the biggest one obviously being which character would become the Black Panther itself within the MCU. Both the cast and higher-ups at Marvel agreed that the role shouldn’t just be recast, so one of the characters already present had to take over the role, and according to a recent interview with Rolling Stone, writer Joe Robert Cole touched on which characters were up for consideration (spoilers below the video for who the new Black Panther is).

In the end, T’Challa’s younger sister Shuri (Letitia Wright) takes on the mantle. “We would kick around the ideas, and try to extrapolate where the story goes and what’s the most impactful choice–what’s the best journey?” Cole explained when asked about the decision. “And where do you go after the film in terms of those characters. M’Baku certainly was someone that got kicked around a little bit.”

When noted by Rolling Stone that Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o) would have been a good choice as well, Cole also noted “That got kicked around! Her name got kicked around for sure.”

Cole also made it clear that there were never any conversations about a CGI Boseman potentially filling in the role in any capacity. “I don’t think anyone felt that would be appropriate,” the writer said.

In GameSpot’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever review, we gave the film an 8/10, saying it “provides a beautiful, if uneven, tribute to one of the MCU’s best heroes.