WATCH | Danai Were Different Now: Danai Gurira On Promoting Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Without Chadwick Boseman

The excitement around Black Panther was palpable from the moment Marvel first announced the superhero film that was released in 2018. And while the anticipation is equally high for the sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, a different energy surrounds the movie given the loss of Chadwick Boseman.

That difference is especially felt by the cast, who’s been promoting the project in recent weeks. Speaking of how it feels to be back on a promo tour for the movie, Danai Gurira tells ESSENCE, “We’re thankful to start sharing it with the world. It’s definitely time.”

“Of course, it’s different because the first one we had Chadwick with us and it was just a whole different – we’re just different now,” she adds. “But I’m grateful for how he’s been honored in this film. I’m grateful for the beauty of what Ryan accomplished. And I knew Ryan would do that because he has such a pure heart and he was so deeply connected to honoring Chadwick. And so I’m thankful for what he was able to do and I think the audiences will be as well.

Gurira plays Okoye, the head of the Dora Milaje, in the franchise and was present for the beautiful celebration of life ceremony that’s teased in the official trailer for the movie. Touching on what it felt like to film that scene, Gurira says, “It was life and art at the same time. You actually are mourning your brother and that was hard. At the same time, I was grateful that we got to do that on such a large scale and the world does too. And I think that there’s a journey we all get to go through together as a result.”

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is in theaters November 11. Check out our full interview with Danai Gurira, as she talks about her training for the sequel being even harder than for the first film in the video above.