‘Avengers 5’ Could Feature a New Black Panther and These Other MCU Heroes
Avengers 5 is still in the works despite all of the pandemic-induced chaos happening at Marvel over the past several months. All of the Phase 4 films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe planned for 2020 — plus the new Disney+ shows — keep getting pushed back further into next year. But the MCU will eventually see a team of new Avengers. When that happens, fans might see a new person take up the mantle of Black Panther.
How Black Panther could return in light of Chadwick Boseman’s death
There is no question that Chadwick Boseman’s untimely death in August affected Marvel’s plans. Boseman’s T’Challa was the star of one of the most successful solo films in the MCU. But according to We Got This Covered, Marvel has been planning for a new Black Panther for the past year.
In 2019, We Got This Covered reported that Boseman wouldn’t leave the franchise, but in either Black Panther 2 or 3 he would hand over the title to Shuri (Letitia Wright). This move would’ve allowed T’Challa to be the full-time king of Wakanda. And he could’ve still shown up in other MCU films.
Shuri’s takeover has also been a popular fan theory for a long time because that’s what happened in the comics. Plus, Shuri as Black Panther fits into studio boss Kevin Feige’s plans for a more diverse MCU.
It isn’t clear how Marvel plans to move forward with Black Panther 2 after Boseman’s death. But it does have options for Black Panther besides Shuri. It could go with Okoye, M’Baku, or Nakia.
Shuri’s Black Panther could be part of ‘Avengers 5’
The biggest question surrounding the Black Panther sequel is how it will handle Boseman’s death. Marvel does have the option of recasting the role of T’Challa. But that seems highly unlikely. The studio risks coming across as disrespectful to Boseman. Plus, it would be difficult for Marvel to find a willing and able replacement.
It could opt for a posthumous digital performance from Boseman like The Rise of Skywalker did with Carrie Fisher’s Leia. But the most likely option is for T’Challa to depart off screen and give the Black Panther title to Shuri.
According to We Got This Covered, the third option is allegedly the direction Marvel is taking. But its plans for Shuri go beyond Black Panther 2. Insiders claim that Shuri’s Black Panther will also be a key part of the next Avengers team.
The new lineup reportedly includes Doctor Strange, Captain Marvel, Spider-Man, She-Hulk, War Machine, Sam Wilson’s Captain America, Wolverine, Yelena Belova’s Black Widow, Shang-Chi, and Shuri’s Black Panther.
This is all speculation, as Marvel is keeping its plans close to the chest. But sources claim this is the direction Feige’s MCU is heading.
Will ‘Avengers 5’ feature the return of Ultron?
According to Inverse, a new fan theory claims Avengers 5 could feature the return of Ultron. Fans will remember that the A.I.’s plan in Avengers: Age of Ultron was to destroy the world and then rebuild it the way he wanted. Ultron believed that starting over would save humanity. But his plans to bring humans back to life didn’t work out.
The new fan theory from Reddit claims that Ultron’s plan for humanity could result in the villain showing up in Avengers 5. They suggest that Ultron’s plan was to use vibranium to give humans a metal body like his.
“So part of his ultimate plan was to give humans metal bodies: so how would he go about this? Well that’s easy: One, he knew about the Vibranium mountain in Wakanda to give him all the metal he needed to create this next version of humanity, & two, he’d need the Infinity Stones to make his ‘Vision’ a reality,” the Reddit user wrote.
Combining the Infinity Stones would allow Ultron to create an infinite loop and make him all-powerful. He could also bring humans back with a snap, and they would have vibranium bodies.
The theorist believes that humans with metal bodies would be as indestructible as Ultron. It would also prepare humanity for all future threats. Fans will have to wait a while to find out whether the theory is correct. Avengers 5 is most likely two years away at least.
