Partnering with this weekend’s inaugural LA3C developed by Deadline parent company, PMC, Deadline’s signature Contenders event hits Downtown Los Angeles on Saturday December 10 for a live in person/virtual edition and final Contenders -film opportunity before Oscar nomination voting begins. With films not previously highlighted at our previous LA and NY outings this Fall, A Man Called Otto, The Woman King, The Banshees Of Inisherin, Emancipation, and The Pale Blue Eye will be front and center for voters and public along with newly produced visits with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Elvis, and Top Gun: Maverick all with talent appearing live at our venue, the J. W. Marriott at LA Live. Also returning to Deadline Contenders will be filmmakers from Till, Thirteen Lives, and Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ Cast & Crew On Battling Through Grief Over Chadwick Boseman’s Death – Contenders L.A.
20.11.2022 - 05:57 / deadline.com
Following up the enormous success of a box office-shattering, Academy Award-winning film with a sequel carries its own pressures and challenges, but for the team behind Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, they also had to navigate production and life after the loss of their beloved lead, their king, T’Challa, the Black Panther himself Chadwick Boseman. Director Ryan Coogler discussed moving forward in the wake of Boseman’s tragic passing in 2020.
“The biggest change was the decision to have a different protagonist,” he said Saturday at Deadline’s The Contenders Los Angeles event. “That was a risky change. [Boseman] and the character were very aligned … so it was the best way for us to move forward with a story about a mother and a daughter. It became very clear to us that would be the relationship that would anchor the film. … We got really excited about making a superhero movie about motherhood, about a Black mom and a Black daughter.”
RELATED: The Contenders Film: Los Angeles – Deadline’s Full Coverage
Coogler was joined onstage by producer Kevin Feige and stars Angela Bassett and Danai Gurira.
“In terms of the grieving, it was intense,” Gurira said of the process. “Chadwick left such an amazing example of an anchoring leader and a man of excellence and really of generous leadership.”
Bassett shared the sentiment. “We lost a bit of our North Star, but we’ve seen the star and how it shines and what it takes to shine,” she said.
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Gurira continued, with a sweet insight into how they continue to honor Boseman on set: “I had pictures of him in certain places and that would anchor me. Ryan had a picture of him on his neck, that would anchor me. … The
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ Leaps To $676M WW; ‘Strange World’ Inanimate – International Box Office
In its third weekend, Disney/Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever continued to reign at the global and international box office. With a $32.1M offshore frame (-53%), the sequel has an overseas total of $308M for $675.6M worldwide through Sunday.
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’: Angela Bassett Asked Ryan Coogler To Reconsider Her Character’s Fate
*Be warned, major spoilers ahead for “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”* Marvel’s “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” is expected to cross $600 million at the global box office this weekend. And it’s really quite the feat that co-writer/director Ryan Coogler was able to pull off, given the heartbreaking development process after losing actor Chadwick Boseman and trying to get the massive film completed while honoring his memory.
Ryan Coogler Gives Thanks To Supporters For The Success Of ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’
There’s a special place at cowriter/director Ryan Coogler’s table and in his heart for those who supported Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Disregard The Corporate Noise: Disney Will Dominate Thanksgiving Box Office With ‘Wakanda Forever’ & ‘Strange World’
Call it a holiday tradition as common as sweet potatoes on the Thanksgiving table, but Disney is going to rule the five-day holiday stretch again after wins in 2016 (Moana), 2017 (Coco), 2018 (Ralph Breaks the Internet), 2019 (Frozen 2) and last year (Encanto), as Black Panther: Wakanda Forever‘s third weekend looks to do $40M over Wednesday-Sunday and Disney Animation’s Strange World hopes to squeeze out $30M+. All of this occurs as Bob Iger is re-installed as the CEO of Disney and the studio’s distribution czar Kareem Daniel exits.
Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles Streaming Site Launches
Deadline’s Contenders Film: Los Angeles welcomed a record 29 of the year’s buzziest movies from 14 studios and streamers live on stage Saturday at the DGA Theater. A crowd of key Academy and key guild voters took in the all-day affair, hearing from the stars and creatives behind the movies that are making noise this awards season. Now you can hear from them too.
Lupita Nyong’o Says Her ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ Performance Was Inspired by Chadwick Boseman’s Widow Simone Ledward
Finding inspiration. In Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Lupita Nyong’o plays the grieving lover of T’Challa, the character played by the late Chadwick Boseman, but in reality, the actress turned to Boseman’s widow, Simone Ledward Boseman, for inspiration.
Contenders Film: Los Angeles Kicks Off Today Live: 29 Awards-Season Movies From 14 Studios
Deadline is offering up a record number of titles in the lineup for Contenders Film: Los Angeles, which kicks off this morning live and in-person at the DGA Theater on Sunset Boulevard.
‘Wakanda Forever’: Ruth Carter On Fashioning Namor’s Undersea Costumes & The New Black Panther Armor
With a career spanning over three decades, costume designer Ruth Carter has crafted looks for the early 1800s, mid-20th Century America and all aspect of ’90s and early 2000’s Los Angeles (from “B.A.P.S.” to “Love & Basketball”). Her efforts have seen her rewarded with three Oscar nominations for Best Costume Design and a win in 2020 for Ryan Coogler’s “Black Panther.” She revisited that pop culture inflection in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” and it was arguably one of the biggest challenges of her career.
‘Wakanda Forever’: The ‘Black Panther’ Sequel Offers Superhero Grief Counseling & Another Dose Of Geopolitical Intrigue [The Playlist Podcast]
There were a lot of questions going into the release of Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” How would the sequel deal with the sudden passing of Chadwick Boseman, the franchise’s leader? Who is going to suit up as the new Black Panther? And do we really need a villain with pointy ears and winged ankles? Thankfully, Ryan Cooger and his fantastic cast have once again delivered a “Black Panther” film that answers all those questions a whole lot more.
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ Leaps Out Of The Gate With $28M Thursday Previews
As expected, Disney and Marvel Studios Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is on fire with a $28M Thursday which easily beats the preview night of the first Black Panther in 2018 which did $25.2M. Wakanda Forever ranks as the third best Thursday preview of the year behind Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness ($36M) and Thor: Love and Thunder‘s ($29M). Overall, Black Panther 2‘s previews rank as the 15th top preview performance in industry history and gives the Marvel Cinematic Universe six of the top 15 starts ever. The 3-day projection for Wakanda Forever is between $175M-$200M at 4,936 theaters.
How Does Black Panther Die In ‘Wakanda Forever’? T’Challa’s Death Mirrors Chadwick Boseman’s Passing
Honoring the king. When Chadwick Boseman died of colon cancer in August 2020, director Ryan Coogler reworked the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever script to write out the late actor’s character.
‘Black Panther’ Producer Suggests Multiple Wakanda Series Coming To Disney+ With Some “Completely New” Characters
While it’s unclear whether or not Ryan Coogler is going to return to direct another “Black Panther” film after the release of ‘Wakanda Forever,’ it has long been known the filmmaker is working alongside Marvel Studios to develop spinoffs for Disney+. Originally, it was revealed that the spinoff would be focused on the Dora Milaje, led by Danai Gurira’s Okoye.
‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ Eyes World Dominance With $365M Opening – Box Office
Despite the presence of New Line’s Black Adam and Universal’s franchise title Halloween Ends at the October box office, the drought we’ve been weathering since the second frame of August with U.S./Canada weekend ticket sales averaging $58M has been stinging to say the least.
‘Wakanda Forever’ Review: ‘Black Panther’ Sequel Is Overstuffed & Yet Still Succeeds With Heart, Soul, Grief & Great Stakes
There’s no line in ‘Wakanda Forever,’ the sequel to Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther” (2018), as bruising and seething as “Bury me in the ocean with my ancestors that jumped from the ships because they knew death was better than bondage.” But emotionally, this somber ‘Black Panther’ sequel is just as visceral and lacerating and perhaps just as absolutist. And spiritually, there is great lineage to this bitter resignation about demise, pride, ancestries, the great depths below us, and the refusal to accept enslavement.