Black Panther: Wakanda Forever may do a ton of world-building for Wakanda and a bit for the MCU at large; however, it is not a film that is really heavy on cameos. Nevertheless, the film does offer two surprise characters that do feel more akin to cameo roles, so these are the two major cameos in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Warning: Spoilers for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever below.
All Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Cameos
The two cameos featured in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever are Killmonger and Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, with both Michael B. Jordan and Julia Louis-Dreyfus returning to play their respective characters.
Killmonger
After Namor decides to flood Wakanda, Shuri decides that the nation needs its protector back, so she tries to find a way to replicate the heart-shaped herb which Killmonger had destroyed in the first Black Panther movie. Thankfully for the people of the African nation, Shuri is able to successfully replicate it, with her deciding to become the next Black Panther. Of course, whenever this is done, the person goes off to the Ancestral Plane, where they meet with someone who has died.
Shuri believes that she will see her mother, who recently drowned due to Namor’s flood, or perhaps T’Challa; however, she is shocked to see it is Killmonger who greets her. It is quickly revealed that the reason for her meeting with Killmonger is because her heart is filled with vengeance due to her mother’s death, a feeling that Killmonger tries to exploit and bring out.
Killmonger may only appear in one scene, but it is a major one given that his words seemingly really get to Shuri and make her question herself. Yet, his words do not fully work as Shuri ends up not going through with the revenge she was planning for her mother’s death, with her choosing to strive for peace by not killing Namor. Nevertheless, Killmonger’s story in the MCU may not be done yet, so this cameo could have a lasting impact on the Black Panther corner of the MCU, though this isn’t confirmed as of now.
Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine
Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine may appear in a few scenes in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever; however, her overall role in the story is extremely small, with her appearance here seemingly setting up elements for this important MCU character.
After the mess that happens in Cambridge, thanks to Okoye, Shuri, Riri, and the police, Everett Ross is called in to investigate, and he almost immediately gets interrupted doing by the appearance of Valentina. Ross is then forced to work on the case with the Contessa, despite his secretly trying to help the Wakandans out behind the scenes.
It is then revealed that Ross and de Fontaine had previously been married, a relationship that ended for unknown reasons, though there is a good chance that was due to a clash in personalities. Unfortunately for Ross, Valentina reveals to him that she had been playing him the whole movie’s events and that she had been monitoring all of his communication with the Wakandans, promptly having him arrested.
Although we don’t see the Contessa for the rest of the movie, it is later shown that Okoye breaks Ross out from his transport, helping him escape, an event that we don’t get to see Valentina react to. With the upcoming Thunderbolts movie, the character of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine is playing a massive role in the MCU’s future as she is assembling that team, but how exactly this movie fits into her character’s arc going forward is unknown.
Perhaps Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is just setting up the relationship between her and Everett Ross, or maybe it is more meant to set up her interest in Wakanda and Vibranium. The Black Panther sequel shows that there are a plethora of people wanting to get their hands on this valuable material, with Valentina being one such person. What this means for the Thunderbolts is unknown, though, so we’ll have to wait and see what all of this means for her and her cameo here.
That is everything you need to know about who exactly the two big cameos are in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. For more coverage on this latest installment within the MCU, keep an eye on Twinfinite, with some of said coverage included down below.