Reaction from attendees of the world premiere of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” in Hollywood Wednesday night was overwhelmingly positive.
“Emotions are heavy,” said Brandon Davis, who runs a Marvel-themed podcast “Phase Zero,” on Twitter. Director “Ryan Coogler ups his game on the action. It’s a lot to take in, balance so much, and is powerfully good.”
“Gripping, emotional and funny,” wrote former 11Alive broadcaster Francesca Amiker, who joined E! a year ago on Facebook.
Orlando Enelcine, a TV critic, said the film “handles loss, grief and revenge with a maturity and seriousness rarely seen in the MCU.”
“Expect your eyes to leak,” said Collider TV critic Steve Weintraub.
The highly anticipated sequel to the 2018 “Black Panther” could potentially eclipse the huge box-office take of the original film, which generated $700 million in box office gross in the United States and $1.3 billion worldwide. It’s the third biggest film in domestic box office gross shot in Georgia since the tax credits came into effect in 2008 behind only “Spider-Man: No Way Home” ($773 million) and “Avengers: Endgame” ($858 million).
The movie was shot in multiple locations in 2021 into 2022 including Boston, Puerto Rico, Brunswick, Georgia; and Trilith Studios in Fayetteville.
The unexpected 2020 death of Chadwick Boseman, who played the lead character and died of cancer before the sequel was ready to shoot, shifted the sequel’s focus. It takes us back to Wakanda after its king T’Challa (Boseman) dies a tragic death and how his community handles the loss.
Several key actors from the first film do return including Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Angela Bassett as Queen Ramonda, Danai Gurira as Okoye, Winston Duke as M’Baku and Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross. Newcomers include Dominique Thorne as Riri Williams/Ironheart and Tenoch Huerta as super-villain Namor.
Tickets opening weekend will likely be difficult to get unless you buy them in advance. You can pre-purchase tickets now with the first tickets available on Thursday, Nov. 10 at 3 p.m. at places like AMC Phipps Plaza, Regal Tara Cinema and LOOK Cinemas in Brookhaven.
The original “Black Panther” opened with $202 million opening weekend. This film, given the early buzz, could match or exceed that number.
About the Author
