A Marvel movie wouldn’t be the same without its customary batch of Easter Eggs, and the highly anticipated Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has been no exception. They went all-out with the hidden details in this one, and we are here for it! Here are a few of our favourites.
Disclaimer: As we’ll be discussing the movie in detail, this list will inevitably contain MAJOR spoilers. So if you haven’t seen the movie yet, we recommend first heading to our Black Panther: Wakanda Forever SPOILER FREE Review.
Now, with that out of the way, let’s get into it!
1) Hommage to Chadwick Boseman
This one isn’t much of an easter egg, as it’s nigh impossible to miss, but we think it should be appreciated nevertheless. The entirety of the opening sequence of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was one big tribute not only to King T’Challa but to Chadwick Boseman himself. The scene is littered with references to Boseman and closes with a poignant Marvel opening featuring clips of Boseman in place of the usual Avengers imagery, giving a moment of silence for our beloved Black Panther. As the images fade out, we also see the familiar scarlet background of the Marvel logo replaced with a deep purple, the colour of the heart-shaped herb. Wakanda Forever really gave Boseman the epic send-off he deserved.
2) Hommage to Nelson Mandela
Chadwick Boseman wasn’t the only one paid tribute to in this gorgeous spectacle of an opening. Look beyond the stone gates in this scene, and you’ll see a modest blue hut. This hut is an exact recreation of Nelson Mandela’s birthplace, placed here by production designer, Hannah Beachler, who stated on Twitter that she wanted to “pay tribute” to black leaders throughout history. This is also a cool nod to the lore of Chadwick Boseman’s character, T’Challa, who was heavily inspired by Nelson Mandela both in the MCU and some of Black Panther’s more recent exploits in the comics. And as an extra layer of trivia, Mandela’s native South African language, Xhosa, was chosen by the MCU as the spoken language of Wakanda. A touching double-tribute; we love to see the presence of history here!
3) A Clashing of Arcs
Did you notice the helmet that Shuri was holding during T’Challa’s funeral? This was the same helmet worn by T’Challa in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War during the battle with the winter soldier. In many ways, Shuri’s arc in Wakanda Forever mirrors that of T’Challa in Captain America: Civil War, from their themes of familial loss and vengeance causing painful inner turmoil when stood against their morality and ethics as rulers of Wakanda. This specific rendition of T’Challa’s helmet was undoubtedly placed in the opening sequence of Wakanda Forever as a sneaky little hint of what was to come.
4) Lake Bell comes to Live Action!
On the quest to discover vibranium outside the borders of Wakanda, an expedition boat comes under attack from Namor’s people. And if you thought the voice of the expedition leader, Doctor Graham, sounded familiar, then you thought right. This is, in fact, Lake Bell, known by fans of the Marvel Universe as being the voice of Venessa Fisk in the 2018’s Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse, as well Natasha Romanoff in 2021’s What If…?.
5) Ant-Man’s Shameless Promo!
When we later see the news of the foiled expedition broadcast on TV, take a look at the text strip at the bottom of the report. You will see the words ‘Scott Lang continues to tour in support of autobiography “Look Out For The Little Guy”’. Scott Lang is, of course, Ant-Man and Look Out For The Little Guy is, as we see in the trailer, the autobiographical memoir that Lang promotes in Marvel’s upcoming 2023 movie, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. We hope it goes well for him!
6) He Bites
As Namor addresses the people of Talokan, he descends through the water in an opulent display of power, settling on a large throne resembling a set of jaws. This throne is actually modelled on the jaw of a megalodon shark, and the hieroglyphic inscriptions on the side translate to ‘This Jade Tooth Bites’ – a warning of how dangerously protective Namor can be over his people.
7) Imperious Rex
In the final epic throwdown between Shuri and Namor, we hear Namor utter the phrase ‘Imperious Rex’. In the movie, this phrase is given no context. However, fans of the comics will probably recognise it as a direct nod to Namor’s comic book counterpart. This phrase is Latin for ‘Emporer King’ and is an expression frequently used by Namor in the comics as a battle cry. I’d have to psych myself up, too, if my opponent just casually got up after being savagely impaled…
8) Will M’Baku take the Throne?
As the movie draws to a close, M’Baku lays down a second challenge for the throne of Wakanda and this time; we think he will be welcomed as the nation’s new Monarch. And it’s possible that the Marvel production may have hinted at just that. During King T’Challa’s funeral in the movie’s opening, we see a statue of two Monarchs representing Beshenga and his Queen watching over the entrance of Mandela’s hut. Beshenga is depicted holding a spear and an orb of vibranium. So it’s a pretty strange coincidence that in the film’s final act, M’Baku’s staff suddenly has the new addition of a vibranium orb embellishment. Is the movie trying to tell us something here? I hope it is because, personally, I would LOVE to see M’Baku as the new Wakandan ruler – carrots for everyone!
9) A Final Farewell To Chadwick Boseman
As the movie ties up its final threads, we see Okoye coming to the rescue of Everett Ross as he’s being dragged away in chains for treason. During this scene, take a look at the vehicle’s number plate. It reads CB112976. This is actually one final reference to Boseman, this time focusing on the beginning rather than the end. It begins with his initials, CB, followed by his date of birth: 11/29/1976. With every ending comes a new beginning.
10) 1804
In the final mid-credit scene, the Haitian building behind Nakia bears the date 1804. This is actually another very relevant historical reference, with 1804 being the year that Haiti gained independence from France, a charge led by Haitian General Toussaint L’ouverture. Later in the scene, we discover that Nakia’s son bears the Haitian name Toussaint, a name that Shuri compliments, telling him that it holds a great deal of history.
How many of these Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hidden details did YOU spot? Are there any that we missed? Let us know in the comment section below!
