Ryan Coogler has officially confirmed that Black Panther 3 will be his “next movie,” signaling his return to Wakanda following the success of Sinners. Speaking onstage during the Sinners panel at Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles, the two-time Oscar nominee revealed to Deadline’s Mike Fleming Jr. that he is deep into developing the third installment of Marvel’s blockbuster franchise.
“If it was anybody but you, I would say, ‘I can neither confirm or deny,’” Coogler joked. “But we’re working on it hard. … Yeah, it’s the next movie.”
Coogler previously ventured into vampire-hunting territory with Sinners, but his next chapter will continue the MCU story that began with Chadwick Boseman’s Black Panther in 2018. The new confirmation follows ongoing speculation about casting, including comments made by Denzel Washington in November 2024. During an interview in Australia promoting Gladiator II, Washington revealed that Coogler was “writing a part for me,” a claim the director has since verified.
Boseman debuted as T’Challa in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, later leading Black Panther and appearing in both Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019). After Boseman’s passing from colon cancer in August 2020, Marvel released Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in 2022, which honored his legacy and followed the aftermath of T’Challa’s death. Letitia Wright’s Shuri ultimately stepped into the mantle of Black Panther.
Source: Deadline