Angela Bassett’s Golden Globes win for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was an important moment for many reasons. As the first star to win a major award for a Marvel movie, Bassett took the chance to honor her former co-star, Chadwick Boseman, in a defining moment for her and the Black Panther franchise.

Angela Bassett gave a stunning performance as Queen Ramonda in the sequel to 2018’s Black Panther. Still, the path to winning the accolade was not an easy one with some tough competition in the Best Supporting Actress category, which included Kerry Condon (The Banshees of Inisherin), Jamie Lee Curtis (Everything Everywhere All at Once), Dolly De Leon (Triangle of Sadness), and Carey Mulligan (She Said). However, Bassett’s win was an amazing achievement but did come with the somber reminder that the main star of the Black Panther franchise is no longer with us. Bassett said in her emotional speech:

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“Weeping may come in the evening, but joy comes in the morning. We embarked on this journey together with love. We mourned, we loved, we healed. We were surrounded each and every day by the light and spirit of Chadwick Boseman. We have joy in knowing that with this historic Black Panther series, it is a part of his legacy that he helped to lead us to. We showed the world what Black united leadership [looks like] beyond, behind and in front of the camera. To the Marvel fans, thank you for embracing these characters and showing us so much love.”

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Did Not Perform Quite as Well as Expected at the Box Office

     Marvel Studios

Despite still being one of the biggest releases of 2022, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever continued the Phase 4 Marvel Cinematic Universe trend of not quite living up to box office expectations. Despite receiving universal praise, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever couldn’t beat Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness to become the highest-grossing MCU movie of the year and looks set to end its cinema run as the 6th highest-grossing movie of 2022.

While appearing at the Golden Globes, Bassett’s co-star Letitia Wright hinted that Black Panther 3 is already in development but will not be coming quickly. That is perhaps not surprising as with so many plates to juggle; Marvel Studios usually has significant gaps between their inter-franchise sequels.

Of course, for Angela Bassett, her time as part of the Black Panther franchise seems to have ended with her appearance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, thanks to Queen Ramonda’s sacrifice in the movie. While this will be another loss for the third installment of the franchise, there is enough talent in front and behind the camera to ensure the Black Panther legacy continues for some time yet. And who knows, very few characters in the Marvel Universe are really dead, so it is possible that there could be a small role for Bassett to play in the next movie when it finally arrives.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will arrive on Disney+ on Feb. 1, 2023.