Who is Shuri? Black Panther 2 is now right on the horizon. It is the long-awaited sequel to the 2018 superhero movie, which introduced audiences around the world to the kingdom of Wakanda and the many MCU characters who live within it.
Black Panther himself, T’Challa, led the Marvel movie after appearing in a smaller cameo role in the third Captain America movie. He went on to return in the Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. However, following Chadwick Boseman’s death in 2022, the Black Panther character of T’Challa has been retired. Instead, Black Panther 2 is set to be led by Shuri. So, who is Shuri, and what do we know about the character?
Who is Shuri?
Portrayed in the MCU movies by Letitia Wright, Shuri is T’Challa’s sister. She is the Princess of Wakanda, as well as the leader of the Wakandan Design Group, which is responsible for many of Wakanda’s technological innovations. This means that, much like Tony Stark, she is an inventor at heart rather than a superhero or a fighter.
We see this on many occasions, one of which is in the battle of Wakanda during Avengers: Infinity War. Instead of fighting on the frontline against Thanos’s forces, Shuri is tasked with removing the Infinity Stone from Vision’s head so that it can be destroyed without killing him. That doesn’t mean, though, that the Wakandan Princess is averse to getting her hands dirty. She even took on Killmonger with her Vibranium gauntlets, which she created as weapons that shoot sonic energy.
In fact, it looks like Shuri will be leaning into her more combative side even further in the near future. It’s now all but been confirmed that Shuri will be the lead character in Black Panther 2, taking on the mantle of Black Panther in the aftermath of T’Challa’s passing. This means that she will be the one in the Vibranium suit, and we got a glimpse of that in the latest trailer for Black Panther 2.
So now that we know who Shuri is, the question is: what’s next for Shuri? The truth is that, beyond taking on the role of Black Panther, we aren’t completely sure what her story will entail in Black Panther 2. But, we’re certain that it’s going to be filled with action and a lot of fun.
Then, it looks as if Shuri’s journey will continue into the MCU’s Phase 5. Phase 5 is shaping up to be a big era for the MCU, with a lot riding on its success. The movies in Phase 5 will include Avengers 5, The Marvels, Ant-Man 3, Guardians of the Galaxy 3, in addition to new Marvel series like Secret Invasion. Shuri may or may not have an important role to play in those movies as Phase 5 builds up to another Avengers movie and potentially a Black Panther 3.
For more deep dives into the world of Black Panther 2, check out our guides to Namor the Sub-Mariner and Ironheart, or we’ve taken a look at the career history of the Black Panther cast.