.jpg?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1 "How Black Panther 2 Editor Honored Chadwick Boseman")
Exclusive: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever editor Mike Shawver reveals how they honored Chadwick Boseman through editing and sound design.
Mike Shawver, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever editor, breaks down how they honored Chadwick Boseman in the opening of the film and reveals a sound design Easter egg. After the tragic death of Boseman, Ryan Coogler completely changed the story of the Black Panther sequel, with grief now at the center of the story and each character’s emotional journey. Shuri’s journey to becoming the next Black Panther is guided by her grief and loss.
Honoring the legacy of Boseman and T’Challa became the heart of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. In an exclusive interview with Screen Rant, Shawver broke down the challenge of giving enough time to each storyline. He reveals what inspired the transition from the funeral to the Marvel logo honoring Boseman. He also shares a sound design Easter egg that brings audiences into Ramonda and Shuri’s journey through grief.
Mike Shawver: We always say we’ve got to play the game the right way. We’ve got to do right by Chad and do right by Shuri’s story. We’ve got to do right by Namor and by Riri. Obviously, there’s a lot of stuff going on. We do that to ourselves…Originally, we were supposed to cut off of Shuri from the funeral, go to black and then have the logo come up. At one point we were going to have world leaders say words about T’Challa and how important he was to the world. But when we did that, it felt too busy. It felt like, “Okay, it’s a chapter, chapter, chapter thing.”
Then I was like, “What if we do something crazy and fade Shuri’s face into the Chadwick logo, so the moment she goes away, he comes up?” Then we take the concept that Ramonda talks about to her on the riverbank before they meet Namor, about how she felt him with his hand on her shoulder like the breeze in the air. We took a wind sound and put it over the logo so that you watch that and think, “Oh, this is a moment of silence.” But there’s actually wind there, which relates to what you find out later and comes back at the very, very end.
Honoring Chadwick Boseman Is The Heart Of Black Panther 2
Shawver faced quite a challenge with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in having to balance multiple stories, between Shuri’s journey to becoming the new Black Panther, Namor’s introduction and arc, Riri’s introduction, exploring the ramifications of T’Challa revealing Wakanda’s truth to the world, and honoring Boseman throughout. Centering Black Panther: Wakanda Forever around Shuri explores each of these arcs but anchors them all in her journey, and with Shuri’s love for T’Challa as the driving force behind many of her actions, his legacy becomes a natural part of the story throughout.
Boseman’s memory permeates every aspect of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever with even the score changing to explore grief and how it is at the heart of Shuri’s journey. The transition from Shuri’s face at the end of the funeral to the Marvel logo perfectly captures the legacy of Boseman and T’Challa. However, the wind during the moment of silence may be even more powerful. By connecting this auditory cue to the Boseman-inspired Marvel logo, to Ramonda’s conversation with Shuri, and to Shuri’s final moment of grief and catharsis, Shawver brings the audience on the journey of grief with Shuri in a full sensory experience.
The introduction of T’Challa’s son is the final piece that cements his long-lasting legacy in the MCU. While T’Challa and Boseman are gone, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever helps their memories live on. T’Challa lives through the love of his people, his sister, and his son. Boseman was a leader on the set of the first Black Panther, and paying tribute to his life became an important part of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever for both the cast and the crew.