Cast
Letitia Wright as Shuri / Black Panther:The princess of Wakanda who designs new technology for the nation. Wright was given a larger role in the film following the death of Chadwick Boseman, who starred in previous MCU media as Shuri's older brother T'Challa / Black Panther. Wright said Shuri turns to her technology as a way to grieve T'Challa.
Lupita Nyong'o as Nakia:A former War Dog, an undercover spy for Wakanda, from the River Tribe. Nyong'o said Nakia has "matured" following both the Blip and the death of T'Challa, explaining that her character's "priorities have shifted and sharpened" while adding that Nakia remains "the one you want to call when you're in trouble".
Danai Gurira as Okoye:The general of the Dora Milaje, Wakanda's all-female special forces, and a former Avenger. In the film, Okoye takes on the mantle of one of the Midnight Angels, along with Aneka. Gurira said the film would explore "many facets" of Okoye's humanity.
Winston Duke as M'Baku:A powerful warrior and leader of Wakanda's mountain tribe, the Jabari. Duke indicated that following the Jabari's involvement in the events of the films Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019), the tribe is no longer isolated from the rest of Wakanda. He also felt M'Baku was trying to figure "out how to move forward" in this new world for Wakanda, much like many in the real world were trying to do during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Florence Kasumba as Ayo:The second-in-command of the Dora Milaje who later becomes general after Okoye is stripped of her duties. She is romantically involved with Aneka.
Dominique Thorne as Riri Williams:An MIT student and genius inventor from Chicago who creates a suit of armor that rivals the one built by Tony Stark / Iron Man. Director Ryan Coogler noted that Williams is a foil to Shuri, adding "there's a thread of similarity" between the two, but they are "also very, very different", with Williams and Shuri's relationship representing a similar exploration of the "diversity of the Black experience" as T'Challa and Killmonger's relationship did in the film Black Panther (2018).
Michaela Coel as Aneka:A Wakandan warrior and member of the Dora Milaje who is romantically involved with Ayo. In the film, Aneka takes on the mantle of one of the Midnight Angels, along with Okoye. Coel was drawn to the character being queer as in the comics, and Coogler described Aneka as "kind of a rebel".
Mabel Cadena as Namora: Namor's cousin and right-hand woman.
Tenoch Huerta Mejía as Namor:The king of Talokan, an ancient civilization of blue-skinned, underwater-dwelling people, who refer to him as the feathered serpent god K'uk'ulkan. Mejía said Namor decides to get involved in the surface world after T'Challa publicly reveals the truth of Wakanda at the end of the first film, which consequently puts Talokan in "jeopardy", leading Namor and his people to "take action to protect themselves". Mejía also confirmed that the character is a mutant as in the comics. Coogler said Namor "[has] lived a really long time and knows no equal in terms of his capabilities", stating that the character, if near enough water, is capable of being as strong as both Thor and Hulk. Mejía called Namor an anti-hero, explaining that it was important to both him and Coogler to humanize the character by making his motivations understandable despite him having an antagonistic role in the film. Coogler said that the DC Comics character Aquaman served as an "indirect guidance" for Namor's portrayal in Wakanda Forever, explaining that because both characters share several similar characteristics that lead to frequent comparisons, he decided not to focus on Namor's similarities to Aquaman, but rather to highlight Namor's "really unique features" from the comics that Coogler was enthused to include in the film, such as the ankle wings and pointy ears, as a way to dissociate Namor's image from that of Aquaman. Coogler also described the character as "kind of an asshole, kind of romantic, and just incredibly powerful". The film changes the meaning of Namor's name from "Avenging Son" in Atlantean, as in the comics, to "niño sin amor" (Spanish for "child without love"), the latter of which is intended to reflect Namor's hatred of the surface world. In the script for Wakanda Forever, Namor's birth name is stated to be Ch'ah Toh Almehen, although this name is not mentioned in the film. To prepare for the role, Mejía underwent a vigorous workout routine to get in shape, as he was concerned about how he would look while wearing Namor's outfit, which in the comics consists exclusively of green swim briefs that Mejía referred to as the "shame shorts". He also learned the Yucatec Maya language and how to swim. Manuel Chavez portrays a young Namor.
Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross: An agent of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) who has previous ties to Wakanda.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine: The new director of the CIA and the ex-wife of Ross.
Angela Bassett as Ramonda:The queen regnant of Wakanda who is grieving the death of her son T'Challa. Bassett explained that Ramonda would be trying to balance leading her people, being a mother to Shuri, and keeping threats to Wakanda "at bay", all while grieving the death of T'Challa, which is "a lot for her to handle". While Bassett was initially unhappy with Ramonda being killed off in the film, Coogler reassured her that death is not necessarily permanent in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and she felt that her character could return in the future, similar to how people were brought back to life following the Blip in Endgame.
Additionally, Michael B. Jordan reprises his MCU role as N'Jadaka / Erik "Killmonger" Stevens, T'Challa and Shuri's cousin. Returning from Black Panther are Isaach de Bankolé, Danny Sapani, and Dorothy Steel (in her final, posthumous role) as the Wakandan River Tribe, Border Tribe, and Merchant Tribe elders, respectively; Connie Chiume reprises her role as Zawavari, previously the Mining Tribe Elder, but now the Elder Statesman, taking over the role held by Zuri in the first film; and comedian Trevor Noah also reprises his voice role as Shuri's A.I. Griot. Alex Livinalli portrays the Talokanil warrior Attuma, while María Mercedes Coroy portrays Namor's mother. Lake Bell—who previously voiced alternate universe variants of Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow in the Disney+ animated series What If...? (2021–2024)—and Robert John Burke appear as Dr. Graham and Smitty, respectively, a pair of CIA officials in charge of the vibranium mining operation. Richard Schiff appears as the U.S. Secretary of State, while Kamaru Usman appears as a naval officer. Archival footage from previous MCU films of Boseman as T'Challa / Black Panther is used in the film's ending, with Divine Love Konadu-Sun appearing as T'Challa II / Toussaint, T'Challa and Nakia's son. CNN news anchor Anderson Cooper appears as himself reporting on the Wakandan activities. María Telón appears as an elder Mayan woman.
