In the wake of King T'Challa's death, Queen Ramonda, Shuri, M'Baku, Okoye, and the Dora Milaje fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia and Everett Ross and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda when a frightening new threat emerges from the hidden undersea nation of Talokan, led by the formidable Namor.
Information |
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Language |
English |
Country |
United States |
Premiere date |
November 11, 2022 |
Running time |
161 minutes |
Genre |
Action Adventure Drama Sci-Fi |
Budget |
$250,000,000 |
Box Office |
$859,208,836 |
Crew |
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Directed by |
Ryan Coogler |
Produced by |
Kevin Feige Nate Moore |
Written by |
Ryan Coogler Joe Robert Cole |
Music by |
Ludwig Göransson |
Cinematography |
Autumn Durald Arkapaw |
Edited by |
Michael P. Shawver Kelley Dixon Jennifer Lame |
Production Co. |
Marvel Studios |
Distributed by |
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
Top Cast |
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Official Trailer |
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Movie Collection |
Movie Order: #02 in Black Panther Collection
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The Plot
The Origins of K'uk'ulkan
In 1571, the Yucatán Peninsula is ravaged by a smallpox outbreak brought by Spanish conquistadors. A desperate shaman, guided by a vision, discovers a glowing blue plant underwater. He and his tribe ingest the substance, which cures them but alters their physiology, turning their skin blue and rendering them unable to breathe air. Compelled to leave the surface, they migrate into the ocean depths, establishing the civilization of Talokan. Among them is a pregnant woman who gives birth to a mutant son, K'uk'ulkan, who retains his skin color and can breathe both air and water. As he grows, he becomes the ruler of Talokan.
Years later, upon his mother’s death, K'uk'ulkan fulfills her wish to be buried in her homeland. Leading his guards to the surface, he witnesses the brutal enslavement of the Maya people by Spanish colonizers. Enraged by the cruelty, he orders the plantation burned to the ground. During the slaughter, a dying Spanish priest calls the boy "el niño sin amor" (the child without love). Embracing this label as a badge of his hatred for the surface world, he adopts the moniker Namor.
The Death of a King and Geopolitical Tensions
In 2024, Princess Shuri works frantically in her laboratory in Wakanda, attempting to synthesize an artificial Heart-Shaped Herb to save her brother, King T'Challa, who is dying from an undisclosed illness. Despite her AI, Griot, warning her that the synthesized herb has less than a 30% chance of success, Shuri is prepared to risk it. Her desperate efforts are interrupted when Queen Ramonda enters the lab with a heartbroken expression, announcing that T'Challa has already passed away. The nation mourns their king with a grand funeral procession, and he is laid to rest by his family and advisors.
One year later, the geopolitical landscape has shifted. Nations around the world, particularly France and the United States, are aggressively seeking Vibranium, fearing Wakanda's unchecked power. At a United Nations assembly, Queen Ramonda exposes a covert French operation caught by the Dora Milaje attempting to steal Vibranium from a Wakandan outreach center in Mali. She delivers a stern warning to the global community: despite the loss of the Black Panther, Wakanda remains capable of defending itself.
The Threat from the Deep
Meanwhile, the CIA and US Navy utilize a new Vibranium-detecting machine to search the Atlantic Ocean. They discover a significant deposit underwater, but the mining operation is swiftly attacked by blue-skinned super-soldiers, the Talokanil. Using a hypnotic song to lure the crew to jump into the ocean to their deaths, the Talokanil slaughter the remaining military personnel. The last surviving helicopter is struck down by Namor himself, who emerges to protect his people’s hidden resources.
Back in Wakanda, Ramonda takes Shuri to a riverbank to mark the end of the mourning period, burning her funeral garments. Shuri, however, refuses to burn hers, unable to move past her grief and anger. As Ramonda attempts to speak to Shuri about T'Challa, Namor emerges from the water, bypassing Wakanda’s advanced security systems undetected. He reveals the existence of Talokan, a rival Vibranium power, and demands Wakanda’s help to stop the surface world from hunting their resources. He issues an ultimatum: deliver the scientist responsible for the Vibranium detector to him, or face war. He warns them not to stand in his way before disappearing.
The Search for the Scientist
The Wakandan Tribal Council convenes to discuss this new threat. While the elder Zawavari suggests complying with Namor to protect Wakanda, M'Baku argues that yielding to Namor would only invite further demands and suggests hunting him down. General Okoye is tasked with locating the scientist. Ramonda, hoping a mission outside Wakanda will help heal her daughter's grief, allows Shuri to accompany Okoye.
The pair travels to the United States to meet Everett Ross. Ross, risking treason and a death sentence, reveals that the Vibranium detector was not a military invention but a class project by an MIT student named Riri Williams. Shuri and Okoye track Williams to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she reveals her own "Iron Man" style armor project in her garage. As they attempt to extract Williams, they are intercepted by the FBI, leading to a high-speed chase involving Shuri on a motorcycle, Okoye in a car, and Williams in her prototype armor.
The escape is cut short when the Talokanil warriors, led by Attuma and Namora, ambush them on a bridge. Despite Okoye’s fierce resistance, she is defeated. The Talokanil capture both Shuri and Williams, taking them underwater, leaving Okoye unconscious on the bridge.
Judgment and Discovery
Everett Ross arrives at the crime scene the next day, hiding Shuri’s Kimoyo Beads to protect Wakanda’s secrets while managing his ex-wife, CIA Director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. In Wakanda, a devastated Queen Ramonda strips Okoye of her rank and dismisses her from the Dora Milaje for failing to protect Shuri. In an emotional outburst against the council, Ramonda laments that she has lost her husband and son, and now her daughter, declaring she has given everything she has. Seeking help, Ramonda travels to Haiti to find Nakia, who has been living in hiding since T'Challa's death. She implores Nakia to infiltrate Talokan and rescue Shuri.
In the underwater kingdom of Talokan, Namor treats Shuri as a guest rather than a prisoner. He gives her a bracelet belonging to his mother and shows her the beauty of his civilization, explaining that he plans to wage war on the surface world and wants Wakanda as an ally. However, he insists that Riri Williams must die to protect Talokan’s secrecy. Shuri refuses to allow the execution. Nakia eventually locates the underwater city, infiltrates the throne room, and rescues Shuri and Riri, killing two Talokanil guards in the process. Namor, enraged by the death of his people, prepares for retaliation.
The Scourge of Wakanda
Namor launches a devastating invasion of Wakanda. His warriors disable Wakandan aircraft while Namor uses his water manipulation abilities to flood the capital city. In the chaos, Ramonda attempts to save Riri Williams from the rising waters in the throne room. While she succeeds in saving the young scientist, the Queen drowns in the process. Namor confronts a grieving Shuri, declaring that she is now Queen of Wakanda, and warns that he will return with his full army in one week to demand Wakanda’s submission. If they refuse, he will destroy them completely.
Meanwhile, in the US, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine reveals to Everett Ross that she knew about his communication with the Wakandans. She explains that she left the Kimoyo Beads for him to find as a trap, and arrests him for treason.
The New Black Panther
Following Ramonda’s funeral, M'Baku counsels Shuri, urging her not to kill Namor, as it would lead to eternal war. Ignoring his plea for peace, Shuri focuses on revenge. Using the fibers from the bracelet Namor gave her, she manages to synthesize a working Heart-Shaped Herb. Upon ingesting it, she travels to the Ancestral Plane, expecting to see her mother. Instead, she is greeted by her cousin, Erik Killmonger. Killmonger taunts her, suggesting that like him, she chose to take the herb out of a desire for vengeance. Shuri wakes up, enraged but empowered, and designs a new Black Panther suit.
Shuri crashes a council meeting between M'Baku and the elders, arriving in her new armor. Despite M'Baku’s continued warnings that killing a "living god" like Namor will bring ruin to Wakanda, Shuri commands the military to prepare for a counter-attack. She vows to kill Namor.
Battle at Sea
Shuri and Riri Williams devise a plan to defeat Namor by exploiting his physiology: they deduce that he draws strength from absorbing oxygen through his skin via water, and by drying him out with intense heat, they can weaken him. Riri constructs a heavily upgraded Ironheart armor, while Shuri outfits the Dora Milaje with new "Midnight Angel" armor. Okoye recruits Aneka to join her in the new suits.
Using a large Wakandan sea vessel as a decoy, they lure the Talokanil army into the open ocean. A massive battle ensues. The Wakandans use sonic weaponry to disrupt the Talokanil communications. While the Dora Milaje, Jabari tribe, and Nakia fight the aquatic warriors on the ship's deck, Ironheart and the Midnight Angels engage the enemy in the air. Shuri, as the Black Panther, intentionally traps Namor inside a Royal Talon Fighter and takes off, isolating him from the water and his army.
Vengeance and Mercy
Inside the aircraft, Shuri activates the engines to raise the temperature, severely weakening Namor. He fights back, breaking the ship's hull with his Vibranium spear. Shuri blasts the ship with her gauntlets, causing a massive explosion that sends both of them crashing onto a desert island. A brutal duel follows. Namor, despite being weakened, impales Shuri on a jagged rock. However, his priority shifts to reaching the ocean to restore his strength. A heavily injured Shuri breaks free, intercepts him, and unleashes a final blast from the Talon Fighter's wreckage, setting Namor on fire and knocking him to the ground.
Shuri stands over the defeated Namor, blade ready to execute him. In that moment, she sees a vision of her mother and remembers T'Challa’s noble spirit. Realizing that vengeance would only destroy her nation, she yells "Wakanda Forever" and offers Namor a truce: Wakanda will protect Talokan’s oceans if he yields. Namor accepts the offer. They return to the main battle, where Shuri and Namor order their respective forces to stand down, ending the conflict.
Aftermath and New Beginnings
In the aftermath, Riri Williams returns to MIT, though she is forced to leave her Ironheart suit in Wakanda to prevent geopolitical complications. Instead of claiming the throne, Shuri leaves Wakanda to stay with Nakia in Haiti. M'Baku steps forward to challenge for the throne in her absence, seemingly with her blessing. In Talokan, Namora is furious at Namor for surrendering, but he assures her that their alliance makes Wakanda dependent on them, strengthening Talokan's position against the surface world in the long run. Meanwhile, Okoye intercepts the transport vehicle carrying Everett Ross and breaks him out of custody.
Finally ready to grieve, Shuri goes to the beach in Haiti and burns her funeral robes, letting the emotions of the past few years wash over her. Nakia joins her, bringing a young boy. She introduces him as Toussaint, explaining that he is her and T'Challa’s son, whom they raised in secret to avoid the pressures of the throne. Ramonda had met him before her death. The boy looks at Shuri and reveals his Wakandan name is T'Challa.
