David Jonsson, a 32-year-old British actor known for Industry and Alien: Romulus, will play T’Challa’s grown-up son Toussaint in Black Panther 3, Marvel Studios announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. The character was introduced as a child in a post-credits scene of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) [1, 7, 5, 6]. Ryan Coogler, who directed the first two Black Panther films, will return as director [1, 2, 3, 4, 8].

Black Panther 3 is scheduled for release in US theaters on December 15, 2028, though the UK release date remains unconfirmed [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. It will be the first Marvel Cinematic Universe film shot entirely on large-format celluloid film [2, 5, 6].

Letitia Wright and Winston Duke will reprise their roles as Shuri and M’Baku, respectively [1, 2, 3, 8, 5, 6]. Denzel Washington is confirmed to join the cast in a role written specifically for him by Coogler, who called Washington "family at this point" and "the greatest living actor" [2, 3, 5, 6].

Jonsson was secretly cast about 5-6 months before the July 2026 announcement after a confidential meeting between Coogler and Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige. Feige described discovering Jonsson as "the guy" as a moment that gave him chills and made him well up [8].

The casting presents a chronological question since the character was a child in Wakanda Forever but Jonsson will portray an adult, indicating a time jump in the story [7]. Marvel chose not to recast T’Challa directly after Chadwick Boseman’s 2020 death from colon cancer, instead introducing his son as the new Black Panther [1, 5, 6].

The first Black Panther film (2018) grossed $1.35 billion worldwide and won 3 Oscars, while Wakanda Forever earned $859 million and an Oscar for costume design [1, 2, 3, 5, 6].

Coogler said, "The last time we got to make a movie, we introduced a character who is the son of the character that the great Chadwick Boseman played... in this next film, he grows up, he comes of age" [1].

Black Panther 3’s December 15, 2028 release date in US theaters is the next major milestone for the franchise [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].