Jonsson lands black panther 3 role – feige reveals secret meeting fue key

Marvel Studios pulled off a stunning coup, securing British actor David Jonsson to lead Black Panther 3, a decision kept under wraps for a remarkable six months. Director Ryan Coogler reportedly identified Jonsson after a clandestine meeting with Kevin Feige, the MCU’s architect, according to a revealing account shared with Empire at San Diego Comic-Con 2026.

Coogler’s ‘gut feeling’ led to jonsson’s casting

Feige divulged that the search for the actor to embody T’Challa’s son hadn’t even begun when Coogler first approached him. “We hadn’t started a search yet,” Feige admitted. “Ryan was working on Sinners, and when Ryan works on a project, he’s all in. So the presumption was we’d sit with him after Sinners came out, after the Academy campaign. We were waiting until after the Academy Awards.”

A month and a half prior to that planned discussion, Jonsson contacted Coogler, presenting his work. “He called me and said, ‘I found him.’ I said, ‘What do you mean?’ He goes, ‘I found him. He’s this guy, David Jonsson.’ He mentioned his Movies. I had seen some of them. I watched more. He goes, ‘I’m going to meet him.’