Would recasting Chadwick Boseman’s iconic role in Black Panther honor his memory better than letting the character fade away? Almost 50,000 fans seem to think so.

Black Panther 2 was officially announced at San Diego Comic-Con 2019, with Ryan Coogler returning as director. After Boseman’s tragic death, Marvel decided to move forward on the sequel to honor the late actor but made it clear that they would not recast T’Challa.

Disney has already decided not to recast the role of T’Challa, but Emmanuel Noisette of E-Man’s Movie Reviews started a petition on Change.org to try to change the studio’s mind despite that. The petition is calling for Disney to not kill T’Challa, but rather to recast him so that he can continue to inspire fans who saw themselves in the character. Claiming “The #1 way to kill a legend, is to stop telling their story” the petition has close to 50,000 signatures as of this article being published.

In the petition, which is quoted below, Noisette claims that Boseman, who died of colon cancer in 2020, would not have wanted his character to be killed off. “Chadwick Boseman wanted people to see the role, and not himself. He believed that the roles he took on were bigger than himself, and the role of T’Challa was no exception.”

In August of 2020, the world mourned the death of Chadwick Boseman. To many, he was known for his on-screen role of Black Panther in the Marvel Universe. While his character of T’Challa was adored by fans, there have been rumors that Marvel will kill off his character in the new movie and for good. 

This is a call for the President of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige, Co-President Louis D’Esposito, and Writer/Director Ryan Coogler to reconsider their decision, and recast the role of “T’Challa” in the Black Panther franchise. If Marvel Studios removes T’Challa, it would be at the expense of the audiences (especially Black boys and men) who saw themselves in him. That also includes the millions of fans who were inspired by the character as well. 

By not recasting, it could stifle the opportunity for one of the most popular, leading Black superheroes to add on to their legacy. 

The petition has 46,900 signatures with hopes of getting more than 50,000. Noisette is hoping that signers will also use the hashtag #RecastTChalla on social media platforms like Twitter to raise awareness for Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige and Louis D’Esposito.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, the sequel to the first movie in the franchise, is currently on a shooting hiatus after star Letitia Wright (Shuri), was injured on set. With much of the movie already shot, it’s not apparent if the petition could have any effect, but it does allow fans to express their feelings about the character, while also acknowledging their affection toward Boseman.