Daniel Kaluuya wants the Black Panther sequel to honor the lasting legacy of the late Chadwick Boseman.
The beloved actor, who played the titular superhero at the 2018 Marvel blockbuster, passed away in August a year ago at age 43, after a private four-year struggle with colon cancer.
Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige recently revealed that the followup to Ryan Coogler’s radical film would concentrate on the fictional universe of Wakanda and Boseman’s personality would not be recast.
In a new interview with The Ringer’s Higher Learning podcast, the British actor, who played the head of safety W’Kabi in Black Panther, stated he simply wants the sequel to focus on Boseman’s legacy.
“For me, what is important to me isn’t the Black Panther heritage, it is the heritage of Chadwick Boseman because that is a human being and a soul that’s real. How do we honor that?” Kaluuya asked.
“Black Panther is going to do what Black Panther does, however that is a guy that dwelt for us. He did it for us, did it our nephews, our nieces, our children. We have to honor that guy how he honored us,” he added.
The Queen & Slim star said he respects Marvel and Disney bosses for choosing not to recast the character of Black Panther and paid an emotional tribute to his pal and former co-star.
“They retired him from the franchise… I respect that position, and I believe that’s out of respect for what that man gave to us, and also what he stayed alive for each of us to encounter. Quietly suffering and continuing to give during that suffering is a facet of humankind you just don’t see often,” Kaluuya shared.
