Warning: This article contains spoilers for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Read at your own risk!
While a lot of fans were calling to recast Chadwick Boseman for the titular role, Marvel stood by their decision not to do so and they found the perfect way to do it by introducing Toussaint, T'Challa's son, who bears the same name in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Who is Toussaint, T'Challa's Son, in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever?
As revealed in the mid-credits scene of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, T'Challa and Nakia had a son, explaining why Nakia has been away from Wakanda for so long -- they chose to keep Toussaint a secret so that he wouldn't have the pressure of the throne at such a young age.
That also reveals that while T'Challa was blipped, Nakia and her son weren't among those Thanos turned into dust. Nakia and Toussaint lived in Haiti all those years and when the time was right, Shuri finally found out about him.
Toussaint kept a secret, too, he revealed to Shuri that his Wakandan name is the same as his father's, Prince T'Challa, son of King T'Challa, and he is one fun kid, too.
READ MORE: Marvel Made Letitia Wright's Black Panther 2 Injury Look Less Serious
Will Toussaint/ T'Challa Be The Next Black Panther in Wakanda Forever?
Unfortunately, he's too young for that role. He's just 5 years old, born around the time before T'Challa and the Avengers fought Thanos in Wakanda, fully explaining why Nakia wasn't there to fight because she was raising a child on her own, away from Wakanda.
Shuri remains to be the Black Panther, for now, since T'Challa is still too young for that but given that he is already revealed, he could be the next Black Panther after Shuri. After all, Shuri managed to synthesize and create a new heart-shaped herb.
Something around a decade more might work for T'Challa to be the next Black Panther but with the unpredictability of the MCU and some time jumps, he may be aged up a big faster.
What Does The Arrival of Toussaint in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Mean For The MCU?
First is that with the arrival of Toussaint in the MCU, they still get to keep the legacy that Chadwick Boseman brought in the character of the Black Panther, at the same time, they get to continue with their original plans of T'Challa with Toussaint having the same name as his father.
They need not erase what Chadwick Boseman brought to the MCU in this set up. It is actually a win-win situation because Marvel gets to keep what Boseman gave to the franchise and they get someone new, related to T'Challa, to actually carry the name in the most sensible way.
Next, Toussaint may be the future bearer of the title of Black Panther after Shuri and while that may take a few years, it is just a delay for T'Challa's own story, one which could even come straight from the comics.
Speaking of the comics, the wife of T'Challa in the comics is Storm, right? With the young T'Challa in the picture and the X-Men's arrival being set up within the next few years, the T'Challa and Storm marriage is still possible to happen.
See the son of T'Challa in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, now showing in theaters.