Daniel Kaluuya Not Returning For The Sequel To ‘Black Panther’

Daniel Kaluuya will not be reprising his role as W’Kabi in the sequel to 2018’s blockbuster Marvel film, Black Panther.

The Academy Award-winning actor played W’Kabi, the confidant and best friend of the late Chadwick Boseman’s character of T’Challa – and the husband of Okoye – in the original movie directed by Ryan Coogler.

According to a report by Rotten Tomatoes, Kaluuya was asked to return for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but couldn’t commit to the project due to scheduling conflicts with Jordan Peele’s upcoming horror flick, Nope.

After Kaluuya’s breakout performance in 2017’s Get Out, he had become more intentional in the way that he chooses and approaches his acting roles. In his cover story with ESSENCE in July, the British-born entertainer stated: “I want to go into places that I don’t know I can. I want three-dimensional characters. I want to tell the story, no matter how big or how small.”

Later in his conversation with Jordan Peele, he added: “For me, it’s about, ‘What genre can you reinvent? And what genre can you expand?’ I feel like you have expanded horror already, and now you’re doing it again—giving it scale and epicness. I love pushing the envelope. We’re in a creative industry, but people will sometimes handle this like they’re working at the bank.”

Filming on Wakanda Forever concluded earlier this year and will continue to explore the world of Wakanda while paying tribute to Boseman, who passed away in 2020 after a bout with cancer. Cast members set to return for the sequel include Danai Gurira, Lupita Nyong’o, Letitia Wright, Martin Freeman, Angela Bassett, and Winston Duke. Wakanda Forever also stars Dominique Thorne and Michaela Coel in new roles.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, is slated for release on November 11, 2022.