Ryan Coogler almost quit filmmaking after Chadwick Boseman's death

After Chadwick Boseman died in 2020, Black Panther director Ryan Coogler wasn't sure whether he wanted to return for a sequel. In fact, he wasn't sure if he ever wanted to make another movie again.

EW recently spoke to Coogler for our cover story on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where he and the cast opened up about returning to set after Boseman's death. After Boseman died in August 2020 after a private battle with colon cancer, Coogler found himself grieving not only the loss of his star but a close friend.

"I was at a point when I was like, 'I'm walking away from this business,'" Coogler says. 'I didn't know if I could make another movie period, [let alone] another Black Panther movie, because it hurt a lot. I was like, 'Man, how could I open myself up to feeling like this again?'"

Matt Kennedy/Marvel Studios Ryan Coogler and Chadwick Boseman on the set of 'Black Panther'

Coogler and co-writer Joe Robert Cole began writing a Black Panther sequel script soon after the original movie hit theaters in 2018, but after Boseman's death, they had to figure out how — or if — to continue. Ultimately, Coogler found himself reflecting on conversations he had with Boseman, where the actor spoke passionately about what the role of T'Challa meant to him. Ultimately, he and Marvel decided to move forward with a new story, choosing to honor Boseman's legacy and expand the world of Wakanda.

Both Coogler and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige have reiterated that they never wanted to recast the role of T'Challa. Instead, a different character will take up the Black Panther mantle in Wakanda Forever.

"It's my job as a filmmaker to do things that I have personal integrity with," Coogler adds. "If I don't believe in what I'm doing, I'm going to have a hard time getting other people to do their best work. For them to do their best work, they have to believe in it. At the end of the day, the choices we make have to feel truthful to me. When filmmakers make things that don't feel truthful to them, you can feel it. And I will argue that those projects don't have a shot at working."

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever also stars Angela Bassett, Letitia Wright, Danai Gurira, Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Tenoch Huerta, and Dominique Thorne, and hits theaters Nov. 11.

For more on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, read EW's cover story on the film here.

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