Jonsson joined Oscar-winning director of the “Black Panther” franchise Ryan Coogler on stage alongside Letitia Wright and Winston Duke, holding a hand to his chest and smiling broadly.
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Marvel Studios used its International Comic-Con presentation on Saturday to announce David Jonsson as the new Black Panther — the son of Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa — and revealed that Ryan Gosling will play Ghost Rider, both in movies due out in 2028.
Jonsson joined Oscar-winning director of the “Black Panther” franchise Ryan Coogler on stage alongside Letitia Wright and Winston Duke, holding a hand to his chest and smiling broadly. “Black Panther III” will be released on December 15, 2028.
“Thank you to this family that I have the honor and blessing to join. I don’t want to say too much because I want to let the screen do the talking,” said the 32-year-old actor, known for his roles in “Industry,” “The Long Walk” and “Alien: Romulus.”
Boseman died in 2020, and since 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever revealed that T’Challa had a son, fans have been playing a guessing game on who might take up the mantle, with Damson Idris and Wright in the mix. The 2018 original Black Panther became the first superhero film to earn a Best Picture Oscar nomination and earned more than $1.3 billion worldwide, while the sequel earned $850 million.
Ryan Gosling enters the MCU
Gosling will reunite with his “Star Wars: Starfighter” director Shawn Levy on “Ghost Rider.”
“I’m getting the best throwback vibes here,” Levy said, referring to his Hall H appearance two years ago to promote “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which became a massive hit. “I’ll never forget that night because it was also my real introduction to the biggest fans everywhere.”
Gosling greeted Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige and told the crowd that he would like to play the character for a long time.
Gosling’s longtime partner Eva Mendes starred alongside Nicolas Cage in Cage’s original standalone film Ghost Rider, released in 2007 — a year before Iron Man launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A sequel was released by Sony in 2012, and the film rights have since reverted to Marvel, but the character has yet to appear in the MCU.
The stars take the stage for ‘Avengers: Doomsday’
Feige told the crowd that Joe and Anthony Russo’s 2019 film “Avengers: Endgame” will be re-released in theaters on Sept. 25 with new footage that ties it to Russo’s “Avengers: Doomsday,” which is set for release on Dec. 18.
A Doomsday trailer played during the panel showed Robert Downey Jr.’s Victor Von Doom. will have some previous connections with
Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal) and Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby). Storm is seen saying that Doom is a broken person who was once different: “Everything he wanted was taken away from him.” Later, Richards asks Doom if he is responsible for the horrors around them.
Downey Jr. joked on stage that Reed and Doom were “the best”. Fans have been curious about the relationship between the two since the post-credits scene of “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” included a clip of Doom sitting in Reed and Storm’s living room with their child.
“Doomsday” stars on stage included Wright, Duke, Chris Evans, Hayley Atwell, Simu Liu, Danny Ramirez, Anthony Mackie, James Marsden, Kelsey Grammer, Paul Rudd, Rebecca Romijn, David Harbour, Lewis Pullman and Tenoch Huerta.
Ryan Reynolds appears as the gray Deadpool
Dressed in a new gray Deadpool costume, Ryan Reynolds brought down the panel from the audience.
“Long time listener. First time caller,” Reynolds said, asking Rudd why Thor was crying in the previous film. Rudd replied: “He’s a Wrexham fan,” referring to the football team Reynolds co-owns.
“That seems like an extremely expensive way to advertise a movie. When do you start shooting?” asked Reynolds.
“It’s in the can, bro! Did you bump your head?” Downey Jr. said from the stage.
Many fans waited more than a day to get inside Comic-Con’s most anticipated panel. Marvel Studios hopes it will act as a reset for its brand, which has been weakened by a glut of Disney+ series and critical disappointment in movies like last year’s “Captain America: Brave New World.” Although audience interest in superhero movies has waned in recent years, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” — released by Sony in coordination with Marvel — will dominate the summer box office when it’s released on July 31, and advance ticket sales have been strong for “Doomsday.”
By LESLIE AMBRIZ Associated Press
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