Actress Letitia Wright has big shoes to fill. After the premier of Marvel’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” on Nov. 11, 2022, fans have eagerly scrutinized her performance in hopes that she upholds the legacy of her co-star and friend, Chadwick Boseman. 

The movie has an ideal balance between honoring the late chief of Wakanda, Boseman and introducing Wright to the spotlight as Wakanda’s new protector.

Boseman played the role of superhero Black Panther in the first “Black Panther” movie. 

Having been diagnosed in 2016, with colon cancer, Boseman battled the disease for a significant portion of his Marvel career. The illness progresed until it became stage four colon cancer while he was filming in Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The announcement of his sickness came as a shock to all Marvel fans, who had been unknowingly watching Boseman fight a silent, years-long battle alone. 

Tragically, Boseman passed away on Aug. 28, 2020, not long after the premier of his last movie, “Avengers: Endgame.” 

The latest movie in the Marvel timeline, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” is a beautiful tribute to Boseman’s legacy. 

Since the first “Black Panther” movie, the franchise has featured rich culture which is infused into the movies with many architectural and artistic ideas coming primarily from the African country Lesotho, along with surrounding countries such as Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

As shown in the trailer, Shuri, playing T’Challa’s sister, supposedly takes on the mantle of Black Panther. The film utilizes the storyline to allude to events during Chadwick Boseman’s battle against cancer. 

In addition to the massive amounts of support for Boseman, Wright brought a piece of him to the premier of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” fashioning an outfit almost identical to the one worn by Boseman at the 2018 Academy Awards. 

 Wright and the rest of the cast mourn the death of their friend, but honor him perfectly with the continuation of what he started.