Marvel Studios’ presentation at San Diego Comic-Con this weekend came with the expected Avengers: Doomsday hoopla and a couple of surprises.
First was the reveal that Ryan Gosling has officially been cast as Ghost Rider in a new MCU film expected to arrive in cinemas in 2028.
Longtime fans of Marvel and Gosling couldn’t have been too surprised, as the actor has not been shy about how much he has wanted to play the character of Ghost Rider – most commonly associated with the motorcycle stunt performer Johnny Blaze. He even confirmed as much when appearing on stage at Comic-Con, saying: “This is a character I’ve wanted to play for a long time.”
Nicolas Cage previously played Blaze in 2007’s Ghost Rider (also starring Golsing’s long-term partner Eva Mendes) and its 2011 sequel, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance.
One far more surprising announcement was the reveal of the new Black Panther…
Following the tragic death of Chadwick Boseman at the age of 43 in 2020, the decision was made not to recast his character, T’Challa, who appeared in Captain America: Civil War (2016), Black Panther (2018), Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: End Game (2019). Marvel boss Kevin Feige said at the time that the actor’s performance was “iconic and transcends any iteration of the character in any other medium from Marvel’s past”.
“To honour the legacy that Chad helped us build, we want to continue to explore the world of Wakanda and all the rich and varied characters introduced in the first film,” Feige added.
The series continued without its main star, with series director / co-writer Ryan Coogler helming the sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever with Letitia Wright’s character Shuri inheriting the Black Panther mantle.
Now, 32-year-old British actor David Jonsson is set to take over the superhero mantle. He will be playing the adult son of T’Challa, Toussaint / T’Challa II – who was introduced as a child in the post-credits scene of the second Black Panther film.
“I want you to give a warm welcome to our new Black Panther: Mr David Jonsson,” said Coogler on stage this weekend.
“Thank you Ryan. Thank you Kevin. Thank you to this amazing family that I have the honour and privilege and the blessing to join,” said Jonsson.
Growing emotional, he added: “I don’t want to say too much because I want to let the screen do the talking, but believe me, the honour is entirely mine.”
The London-born, RADA-trained actor rose to fame playing Gus Sackey on HBO’s hit show Industry before earning acclaim for his performances in Rye Lane (one of our favourite movies of 2023), Alien: Romulus and last year’s adaptation of Stephen King’s dystopian thriller “The Long Walk”. Last year, he also won the BAFTA Rising Star Award.
Following the announcement, Wright said she was delighted by Jonsson’s casting.
“The news was really beautiful to hear because I have a personal connection to David,” she told Entertainment Weekly. “To see the full circle of that today, I’m still living in it. We’re both still checking in with each other about it.”
She added about her character Shuri: “She now has that mantle to pass on, and [that] guidance and the wisdom.”
Black Panther 3 will star returning actors Leticia Wright and Winston Duke, as well as Denzel Washington, who previously confirmed that he will appear in the film. Coogler returns as director for the third time, following the critical and box-office success of Sinners, which broke the record for the number of Oscar nominations this year, with a total of 16, taking home four statuettes including Best Original Screenplay for Coogler.
The first Black Panther film was a huge hit, taking in $1.3bn at the worldwide box office. It became the first superhero film to receive a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars and the first MCU film to win an Academy Award. It took home three of its seven Oscar nominations – Best Production Design, Best Costume Design and Best Score.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever became the highest-grossing MCU movie of the last five years, earning $859 million worldwide.
In our review of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, we said: “The familiar third-act Marvel issues, ie: the obligatory crash-bang-wallop segment – here a rather daft maritime scuffle whose resolution can’t help but feel underwhelming – reminds you that this is a film forced to fit inside the Disney / MCU machine. (…) Still, the film’s occasional unevenness makes you appreciate Coogler’s efforts and to what extent he has managed to sidestep the assembly line template for most of the runtime.”
Check out the full review here.
Black Panther 3 will be released in cinemas on 15 December 2028.