All the Black Panther Wakanda Forever Easter Eggs You May Have Missed

If you’ve been here before, thanks for stopping by to read our Wakanda Forever Easter eggs post. You know we love our Marvel Easter eggs. If you’re new here, welcome to the hunt! We’ve scoured the film for all the Black Panther Wakanda Forever Easter eggs you may have missed!

All the Black Panther Wakanda Forever Easter Eggs You May Have Missed

This article contains spoilers for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Turn back now if you haven’t seen the film.

Trevor Noah

Trevor Noah (The Daily Show) returns to voice Griot. Griot, the Wakandan artificial intelligence, had a small role in Black Panther and has an expanded role as Shuri’s personal assistant AI.

Incurable Illness MacGuffin

Though left unspecified in the film, King T’Challa dies similarly to the way Chadwick Boseman did by passing away after a battle with an incurable illness.

However, Black Panther shouldn’t be able to die this way because he should have been protected by the fabled heart-shaped herb that grows in Wakanda. The herb gives the Black Panthers their superhuman powers, but after the events of the first film, there are no more heart-shaped herbs with magical powers because Killmonger destroyed them all so no one could challenge him as he usurped the thrown.

At the start of Wakanda Forever, there are still no herbs to be found, T’Challa when he is ill, and Shuri has not been able to successfully create a viable option.

T’Challa’s Theme

Composer Ludwig Göransson composed new themes for Shuri and other characters and we only hear the full T’Challa Theme during the funeral.

Zuri’s Successor

Forest Whitaker‘s Zuri, the Wakandan spiritual warrior shaman leader and advisor to the king, sacrificed himself to save T’Challa from Killmonger in the first film. During the funeral, we see the shaman position has been filled by a new female leader as she carries the same spear.

King Bashenga

During T’Challa’s funeral, the name Bashenga is referenced. Bashenga was Wakanda’s first king.

In the comics, King Bashenga was also the first king of Wakanda as first seen in “Black Panther #7,” written and drawn Jack Kirby.

T’Challa’s Challenge Weapons

At T’Challas’s funeral, a shield and spear are placed next to the coffin. These are the challenge weapons T’Challa used in the first Black Panther, first by M’Baku and later by Killmonger.

 

Black Panther’s Helmet

Shuri is carrying the Black Panther helmet during the processional. But it’s not the one from the Black Panther movie, it’s the one worn by Chadwick Boseman in Captain America: Civil War.

The Black Panther movie suit didn’t have a helmet, that entire suit was comprised of advanced Wakandan tech housed inside a necklace.

Chadwick Boseman’s Marvel Studios Logo Marquee

The scrolling Marvel Studios marquee and logo are a bit subdued in this film.
Instead of the usual vibrantly colored collection of MCU heroes, this intro exclusively features footage of the late Chadwick Boseman’s time as King T’Challa in a muted purple, black and white color palette.

This is the second time Marvel Studios has used this scrolling intro, as it was added to the Disney+ version of Black Panther in November 2020 following Boseman’s untimely passing.

Lake Bell and Robert John Burke

Early on in the film, we are shown an expedition in the Atlantic Ocean to locate a repository of Vibranium outside Wakandan jurisdiction. Here we meet a scientist, played by Lake Bell, and a security chief, played by Robert John Burke.

Bell is the voice of Natasha Romanov in the Disney+ animated series “What If…?” and also Vanessa Fisk in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. She’s also widely known for her role as Poison Ivy in the animated “Harley Quinn” series.

This is Burke’s foray into the MCU, but he’s known for movies such as BlacKkKlansman, Robocop 3, and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.

Vibranium

Who knew Vibranium was an untraceable resource found anywhere but in Wakanda?

Apparently, there is a significant repository in the Atlantic Ocean, unearthed thanks to teenage scientist Riri Williams’ (Dominique Thorne) technological advancement. This discovery kickstarts the deadly conflict between Wakanda and Talokan.

Anderson Cooper, Scott Lang’s Memoir, and New Asgard Treaty

CNN’s Anderson Cooper (as himself) cameos as he references Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) in two separate CNN broadcasts that appear in the film.

In the first clip, we see a discussion of Wakanda’s deteriorating foreign policy relations. As Cooper reports, the chyron caption at the bottom of the television screen shows Scott Lang aka Ant-Man, and his best-selling memoir, titled “Look Out For the Little Guy,” which was shown briefly in the exclusive footage for the upcoming Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania that was screened at the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con and D23 Expo.

In the second broadcast, which informs the world that Queen Ramonda (Angela Bassett) has mysteriously died, we see another chyron caption that details a treaty taking place at New Asgard, showing that the new Asgardian home that was introduced in Avengers: Endgame and further explored in Thor: Love and Thunder, which the Asgardians call Midgard.

“My favorite colonizer”

You know the cameo is coming when Shuri says she’s going to see her “favorite colonizer,” a callback to Black Panther’s Everett K. Ross.

“You Owe My Brother”

We get an Everett K. Ross cameo with Shuri Ross for his help in tracking down the scientist who created the vibranium locator. She is quick to remind him “You owe me. You owe my brother.”

That call back is in reference to the events of Black Panther when Ross was shot and almost died as Killmonger broke into the CIA facility where Ross and T’Challa were interrogating Ulysses Klaue. T’Challa used his kimoyo beads to stabilize Ross and bring him to Wakanda, where Shuri then used her advanced medical technology to save his life.

Artificial Intelligence

Queen Ramonda isn’t a fan of advanced technology and says something to the effect that AI will eventually kill us all. This is a nod to James Spader’s Ultron who nearly wiped out all of humanity in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Three Elephants Symbolism

When Ramonda brings Shuri to the shore to have a heart-to-heart, they see three elephants, which appear to be a family—an adult, an older child/teen, and a young infant elephant.

It’s beautiful symbolism signifying the bond that Ramonda, T’Challa, and Shuri shared that Ramonda is trying to repair. Namor’s arrival disrupting the elephants further signifies that symbolism showing how the impending arrival of the Talokanil is about to drive that family’s bond deeper apart.

“I’m Kidding, We Are Vegetarians”

M’Baku (Winston Duke), leader of the Jabari tribe, saunters into the throne room chewing on a carrot, rehashing the joke he made in the first film saying they were vegetarians is still a fact.

 

MIT

We finally get our first MCU appearance of Riri Williams, aka Ironheart, thriving on the campus of MIT. Not only do we get comic-accurate MIT enrollment, but it’s also a subtle nod/tie-in to Spider-Man: No Way Home. Remember how badly Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and his friends wanted to get into MIT?

A Homemade Suit of Armor

We first see Riri Williams’ homemade suit of armor, which is reminiscent of Tony Stark’s Mark I armor from Iron Man (2008). Shuri asks, “Is that Stark tech?” when she spots Riri’s blueprints.

 

Ironheart’s First Flight

When Shuri (Letitia Wright), Okoye (Danai Gurira), and Riri make a hasty escape from law enforcement, the princess and her bodyguard can see that Riri has used “borrowed” Stark tech to make her very own prototype super suit.

As we see Riri flying through the Boston skies, it’s reminiscent of Tony Stark’s first flight in Iron Man. The scene is mirrored when Riri discovers her prototype suit has limitations as she flies too high without a mask to provide oxygen, similar to when Tony flew too high during his first flight and his suit began to freeze.

Shuri and Riri Handshake

When Shuri and Riri handshake in Shuri’s lab it mirrors the way Shuri and T’Challa would greet each other with a special-to-them handshake.

 

More MUTANTS

As Namor explains his origins, he drops the M word—MUTANT.

In the comics, Namor hasn’t spent a ton of time with the X-Men, but he has spent some. He was also the star of a series titled “Namor: The First Mutant.”

Since the Disney-20th Century Fox merger, fans have been not-so-patiently waiting for the introduction of mutants and the most iconic team, the X-Men.

This is the third time we’ve had a direct MUTANT reference in the MCU. The was with the return of Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart) in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and the second was with the explanation for Kamala Khan’s (Imma Vellani) powers in Ms. Marvel.

K’uk’ulkan

Namor’s origins and focus on his Mayan heritage are seamlessly woven into the storytelling of Wakanda Forever while staying quite faithful to the comic character.

The origin of his name Namor comes from a Spanish missionary who calls him “el niño sin amor” (“the boy without love”) and his Talokan followers call him K’uk’ulkan, aka the feathered serpent god that was worshiped by Mesoamerican civilizations prior to the arrival of the European invasion. K’uk’ulkan is a nickname Namor clearly gets from his people because of his strange and unique winged feet.

Familiar Underwater Comic Characters

Namor’s closest advisors hailing from Talokan include Attuma (Alex Livinalli) and Namora (Mabel Cadena), both important characters from Marvel Comics, though they hail from Atlantis, not Talokan in the comics.

In the comics, Attuma is often Namor’s rival for the throne of Atlantis. Namora is his cousin.

Director de Fontaine

Everett Ross mentions the new of the CIA and you shouldn’t be surprised when it’s Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). We first meet Val in “The Falcon & the Winter Soldier” and then in the post-credits scene from Black Widow, where she seemed to be assembling a team to work for her and the U.S. government. This group is known as the Thunderbolts in the comic, and they will be getting their own movie in MCU Phase Five.

 

“Rise Talokan”

Considered to be counterparts in terms of ancient civilizations with secretive cultures and advanced technology, Wakanda and Talokan have many similarities, including their rally cries as they ready for war. Namor incites his people with the cheer “Rise Talokan” and a two-palm hand gesture, not dissimilar to the iconic phrase “Wakanda Forever” and crossed arms pose.

Killmonger Returns

When Shuri takes the heart-shaped herb to visit the Ancestral Plane, the last person she—and we—expects to see is her late cousin, Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan). While Jordan was obviously in the first film, this also marks the fourth consecutive Ryan Coogler-directed film Jordan has appeared in.

T’Challa Spares Zemo Life

When Shuri visits the Ancestral Plane and gets an earful from Killmonger, he makes sure to draw extra attention to how T’Challa was a weak leader for sparing Helmut Zemo (Daniel Brühl). Zemo was the terrorist responsible for the death of King T’Chaka in Captain America: Civil War.

This test in the Ancestral Plane will guide Shuri’s rage and desire for vengeance after Namor killed Queen Ramonda. It’s clear Killmonger is trying to manipulate his cousin into coming to the dark side by taking Namor’s life in return.

“He Killed His Own Brother”

Killmonger also mentions that her father “killed his own brother” while he ambushes Shuri on the Ancestral Plane.

In a flashback, we learn that after T’Chaka discovered N’Jobu had betrayed Wakanda and was preparing to steal vibranium to give it to oppressed people around the world, he killed N’Jobu to save the life of his advisor Zuri.

 

Missing W’Kabi

Daniel Kaluuya‘s W’Kabi is absent during the film. W’Kabi was an ally of T’Challa’s who turned against him because he wanted to see Klaue killed for his crimes against Wakanda.

Queen Ramonda tells Okoye that while her husband is dead (King T’Chaka was killed in Captain America: Civil War), Okoye can visit hers in jail. We can assume W’Kabi was jailed for his treasonous acts against the King.

In reality, Kaluuya has a filming conflict with the making of Jordan Peele’s Nope.

Riri William’s Family

While we’re sure to get more of Riri’s orgin story when her series drops on Disney+ next fall, we did get a few nuggets of her MCU background.

She mentions her stepfather, a skilled mechanic (rumored to be played by Alden Ehrenreich). She also mentions she got a lot of her technical know-how from her brother, though, in the comics, she only has a sister.

Timeline Syncs: 6 years?

Math can be hard.

Queen Ramonda tracks Nakia in Haiti. We learn she has been living in disguise for 6 years. Wait, how is it 6 years if Black Panth came out 4 years ago you ask?

The MCU timeline and IRL timelines do not sync perfectly.

Black Panther was released in 2018, but its events took place right after Captain America: Civil War, which took place in 2016.

Then we have the “The Blip” from Avengers: Endgame, where half the universe (including T’Challa) was snapped out of existence for 5 years thanks to Thanos.

So rough calculations should put Black Panther Wakanda Forever taking place in 2024. Hold on to that. We may need it in a couple of years.

 

The Midnight Angels

In the comics, the Midnight Angels are described as the most elite strike team in all of Wakanda’s military force, with them taking part in advanced operations with the occasional use of superior suits and weaponry.

In the comics, it’s Ayo and Aneka who wear the distinctive Midnight Angel armor. In the film, Aneka (Michaela Coel) and Okoye are the pair of Dora Milaje guards who become the first Midnight Angels.

While Okoye takes a bit to warm up to the blue armor Shuri has created, she and Aneka get their own superhero suits.

“Show Him Who You Are”

When Shuri is in the final battle with Namor, Queen Ramonda offers Shuri guidance from the Ancestral Plane and says, “Show him who you are.”

This is a callback to the first film when Queen Ramonda told T’Challa the same words of encouragement when he was battling M’Baku for the throne.

“Imperius Rex”

In the final battle scene, you hear Namor say “Imperius Rex, his catchphrase from the Marvel comics. Roughly translated in English to mean “Empire King,” Namor says it to make it clear to his enemies that he is the most powerful.

 

Did we miss any? Leave us a comment below!

Black Panther Wakanda Forever is now playing in theatres.