Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was never going to be anything other than a hit for Marvel Studios, but the movie’s previews and opening night suggest that it could well land the biggest opening weekend of the year. Having pulled in $28 million domestically from its Thursday previews, which itself puts it in the top fifteen preview totals of all time, the movie has gone on to rack up over $58 million as of the time of writing with a large chunk of Friday and the weekend to go.
In context, by the end of Friday, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever will have surpassed the entire opening domestic weekend of DC’s recent Black Adam, and will already be halfway to beating Thor: Love and Thunder’s opening haul. If the film continues to pull in audiences to the level it is expected to, that will put it on course to potentially top the original Black Panther and this year’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness with a $200 million upward debut.
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Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is not only one of the biggest Marvel movies in its position as the closing movie of Phase 4 of the MCU, but also one of the longest Marvel films ever with a runtime of 161 minutes. That doesn’t seem to be deterring fans from flocking to round out Marvel’s biggest year since 2019 with a bang. After the disappointment of Thor: Love and Thunder, the film is seemingly getting the MCU back on track in every way.
Does Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Honor the Legacy of Chadwick Boseman?
The storyline of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was forced to change somewhat following the death of Chadwick Boseman, and that led to the movie taking on a whole new purpose for the movie. Rather than expanding the Marvel Universe, the sequel had to make sure that what Chadwick Boseman started with the character of T’Challa is carried on despite his passing. However, as director Ryan Coogler recently explained, the grief seen in the movie was always a part of it, just with a different source. He said:
How the franchise will move forward is yet to be seen, but the world of Wakanda continues to have an important part to play in the MCU’s future. As we now head into the heart of the multiverse saga, there is no doubt that we will be seeing the new Black Panther joining the fight against Kang, and it is almost certain that despite Black Panther 3 not yet being discussed, it is surely only a matter of time until we return to Wakanda again.
“The tonal shift, I will say, was less of a shift than in [casting]. The tone was going to be similar. [T’Challa] was going to be grieving the loss of time, you know, coming back after being gone for five years. As a man with so much responsibility to so many, coming back after a forced five years absence, that’s what the film was tackling. He was grieving time he couldn’t get back. Grief was a big part of it.”
