Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has expanded its roster with a new member as UFC champ, Kamaru Usman, joins the star-studded cast of the movie, MMA Fighting has confirmed. The UFC Welterweight Champion will make a cameo, however other details about his role are tightly under wraps.
Responding to his casting, Usman’s manager Ali Abdelaziz took to Twitter and said, “Never listen to nobody who says you can’t dream, because this young boy from Nigeria, his dreams are coming true, all you have to do is work hard.” Certainly grabbing a role in any capacity in the ever-evolving Marvel Cinematic Universe is akin to dream come true.
The Black Panther franchise has always been big on including Black talent both in front and behind the camera and the sequel continues to build on that idea. The 2018 movie became a substantial game changer by bringing cultural significance, and representation to a (then) mostly-white superhero genre. It went on to become a grand celebration of culture and also break the genre’s Academy-Award curse and ran in the Best Picture category that year and won for Best Costume Design, Best Original Score, and Best Production Design.
A trailer for the sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was revealed during the San Diego Comic-Con that saw Queen Ramonda, Shuri, Nakia, and the entire Kingdom of Wakanda grieving at the loss of their King T’Challa. After the untimely demise of the lead actor, Chadwick Boseman changes were made to the script by Ryan Coogler who co-wrote alongside Joe Robert Cole. We’ll see Wakanda grieving for their king while also rising up to meet new challenges to protect their nation.
The movie cast includes Letitia Wright, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Winston Duke, Florence Kasumba, Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Tenoch Huerta, Martin Freeman, and Angela Bassett. With Marvel's penchant for keeping things close to the vest, we'll have to wait till the sequel hits cinemas to see the extent of Usman's cameo.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever premieres on November 11. Meanwhile, check out the new trailer and synopsis below:
In Marvel Studios' "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett), Shuri (Letitia Wright), M'Baku (Winston Duke), Okoye (Danai Gurira) and the Dora Milaje (including Florence Kasumba), fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T'Challa's death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o) and Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda. Introducing Tenoch Huerta as Namor, king of a hidden undersea nation, the film also stars Dominique Thorne, Michaela Coel, Mabel Cadena and Alex Livanalli.