The New Black Panther Will Be T'Challa's Son

Marvel Studios announced that the third Black Panther film will be released in theaters on December 15, 2028, and that the role of the superhero will pass to a new actor: British actor David Jonsson will play the adult version of T'Challa's son, who will inherit the mantle in the film. The announcement came on July 25 during Marvel's panel in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con, the largest US convention dedicated to comics and pop culture.

The choice carries particular weight given how Marvel had handled the character after the death of Chadwick Boseman, the actor who played T'Challa in the first Black Panther in 2018 and who died in 2020 from colon cancer. The studio then decided not to entrust the role to another actor: in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022), the Black Panther mantle passed to T'Challa's sister, Shuri, played by Letitia Wright. The new film, however, revives T'Challa's direct lineage through his son, introduced as a child in the post-credits scene of Wakanda Forever as the result of his relationship with Nakia. The boy, named Toussaint in America, had taken the Wakandan name T'Challa; the character is now referred to as T'Challa II. Jonsson plays his adult version, which implies a time jump or another narrative device to justify his age.

Ryan Coogler, who directed both previous films, returns to direct. On stage, alongside Jonsson, Wright and Winston Duke also appeared, with Duke reprising his role as M'Baku. Wright said she has a personal connection with Jonsson and was moved by his casting. Coogler had already indicated, at the end of 2025, that it would be his next film.

Several details remain to be confirmed. Marvel has not released any plot elements. The presence of Denzel Washington, which has been rumored for some time and which the actor himself hinted at by saying Coogler was writing a part for him, was not officially announced during the panel, and it is not known which character he would play. Production, according to reports, is expected to begin in 2027.

The film is set in the so-called Phase 7 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which follows the conclusion of the Multiverse Saga, scheduled with Avengers: Secret Wars on December 17, 2027. It will also be the second Marvel film released in 2028: in the same panel, the studio announced a Ghost Rider film starring Ryan Gosling, directed by Shawn Levy.

For Marvel, the gamble is twofold: to relaunch one of its most successful franchises — the first Black Panther grossed over 1.3 billion dollars and was the first comic book film nominated for Best Picture Oscar — and to do so by entrusting the iconic character to a new actor for the role, after choosing for years not to replace Boseman.