Black Panther: Wakanda Forever star Letitia Wright's unvaccinated status may lead to further filming delays for the Marvel Cinematic Universe movie.
The Black Panther sequel recently halted production to allow Wright time to recover from an injury she sustained while shooting a stunt, with Wright heading home to London. Problem is, as The Hollywood Reporter noted, the CDC implemented a new rule on Nov. 8, requiring all non-immigrant, non-citizens flying to the U.S. be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and give proof of their vaccination status before they board a plane to the country. Given that Wright is neither vaccinated nor a U.S. citizen, this will presumably complicate her return to filming the movie stateside.
Wright, who plays T'Challa's tech-whiz sister Shuri in the MCU, found herself embroiled in controversy after sharing a video with anti-vaccine and anti-trans commentary on her since-deleted Twitter account in December 2020. Then, in October, a report emerged claiming that Wright had been espousing anti-vaccine views throughout shooting on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Shortly after, Wright released a statement in response to the allegations, reading, "Anyone who knows me or has worked with me, knows that I work incredibly hard at my craft and my main focus is always to do work that’s impactful and inspiring," However, as many pointed out, Wright didn't actually deny that she expressed anti-vaccine sentiment on the Wakanda Forever set, nor did she mention COVID-19 (either directly or indirectly) in her post.
For the time being, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever's hiatus isn't expected to affect its scheduled theatrical release. Marvel Studios had already shuffled its film slate for 2022-2023 prior to the development in October, resulting in the MCU sequels Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Thor: Love and Thunder, The Marvels, and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania being delayed by as much as five months from their previously announced dates, along with Wakanda Forever.
Black Panther director Ryan Coogler is helming Wakanda Forever, with much of the first movie's cast reprising their roles for the sequel, save for the obvious exception of T'Challa actor Chadwick Boseman, who tragically died from colon cancer in August 2020. The film opens in theaters on Nov. 11, 2022.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter