New Black Panther: Wakanda Forever concept art just dropped that shows an underwater battle between Ironheart and Namora, which was cut from the finished film. Concept artist Phil Saunders shared the keyframe illustration which depicts Ironheart diving into the water to attack Namora on Instagram.
Revealing the script’s original setting as an oil rig due to the pillars visible in the background, Saunders discussed his thoughts on the sequence featuring Riri Williams, aka Ironheart – played by Dominique Thorne (If Beale Street Could Talk, Judas and the Black Messiah), who was introduced as a new heroine in the Mavel Cinematic Universe and will have her own series Disney+ original series set to premiere in late 2023. The artist went on to give praise to Josh Nizzi’s design for Namora – played by Mabel Cadena (Asphalt Goddess).
“Another keyframe for #blackpanther #wakandaforever, this time #ririwilliams diving in to attack #namora,” Saunders commented along with the images. “The original setting in the script was an oil rig, hence the pillars in the bkgd. You can see how the helmet was intended to be shown, with the faceplate clear and Riri’s face visible. I really loved painting @joshnizzi.art ‘s incredible design for Namora, so richly textured and dynamic!”
Ever since the highly-anticipated sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever hit theaters, Saunders has posted several samples of concept art for the film with fans, including concept art detailing Thorne’s Ironheart suit. Many of Saunders’ colleagues on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever have also shared samples of concept art with fans, further expanding the world existing as a part of the MCU. Marvel Studios visual development artist Anthony Francisco also took to Instagram to share original designs for Okoye (Danai Gurira, The Walking Dead) and the rest of the Dora Milaje as well as Namor (Tenoch Huerta Mejía, Narcos: Mexico), the leader of the undersea territory of Talokan.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is still in theaters, and continues to impress fans and perform well in the box office. In addition to Thorne, Cadena Huerta and Guriraa, the popular sequel to 2018’s Black Panther stars Letitia Wright as Shuri, Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Winston Duke as M’Baku, Florence Kasumba as Ayo, Michaela Coel as Aneka, Angela Bassett as Queen Mother Ramonda, Alex Livinalli as Attuma and Martin Freeman as Everett Ross.
Catch Black Panther: Wakanda Forever before it leaves theaters. Check out the Saunder’s Instagram post below:
