Black Panther’s Post-Credits Scenes Explained

Black Panther fans won’t want to leave before the credits roll, since it’s in the post-credits scenes that the future of Marvel’s universe begins to take shape. Not that audiences will need any convincing to soak up every second of director Ryan Coogler’s record-shattering Black Panther. Acclaimed as one of Marvel’s best solo films since the very start, where the movie leaves T’Challa and his kingdom of Wakanda will have fans talking for months to come. And knowing that Avengers: Infinity War is coming soon, dissecting exactly how Black Panther‘s ending changes the MCU will only get more entertaining.

But after all the dust settles, and fans prepare to hunt down every Black Panther Easter egg and secret comic book nod, the post-credits scenes deliver the real knockout blows. We’re breaking down how T’Challa’s speech will reshape the MCU, and more importantly, what the return of Bucky Barnes to the Marvel Universe means.

Black Panther may only tease Bucky’s return, but it reveals more than fans may catch. So strap in.

The first of the scenes buried in and around the closing credits is less of a tease, and more of an actual conclusion to the story and themes of Black Panther as a whole. With the bad guy beaten and Wakanda safe (for now), T’Challa decides to make good on his promises, and put his change of heart into national policy. Taking the main stage at the United Nations, the King of Wakanda drops the veil of secrecy that has been wrapped around his kingdom for centuries. The time for building walls, T’Challa says, has come to an end.

Rather than believing in doubt and skepticism about the world at large, Wakanda will begin to offer its technology and advancements to humanity everywhere. It’s a positive note to end the film on – particularly with Wakanda now reaching out to Oakland specifically, and the oppressed people who set T’Challa’s father and uncles on this course in the first place.

But for Marvel fans looking to the future of the MCU, two things should be taken away from this scene:

Sets the stage for Wakanda and T’Challa to become the major player on MCU’s Earth that they are in the comics, and
It establishes T’Challa’s own philosophy and politics, potentially at odds with other Marvel heroes.
READ MORE: BLACK PANTHER’S MID-CREDITS SCENE THROWS SHADE AT PRESIDENT TRUMP

Some will certainly hear T’Challa’s argument against “building walls” and take it as a direct shot at President Donald Trump’s current administration. But the truth is far greater, and more timeless than that. After all, Donald Trump may be the first American president to argue a thousands-of-miles-long physical wall be built around the country, but metaphorical walls have been built in all countries, and all empires throughout human history.

It’s old fashion isolationist, and protectionist thinking – and as Black Panther shows, there are arguments to be made for it. But his rise to power has changed T’Challa’s perspective, and now, his moral obligations to the globe inform his decisions as well. So this closing scene does a good job of explaining why the whole world can know about Wakanda in Infinity War and beyond.

But it also prepares T’Challa to become a leader of Earth’s superhero community, too (as has been expected since we heard the first rumblings of Iron Man’s time in the spotlight fading). A humanitarian who embraces optimism, and knows the problems with wrapping a country in a suit of armor is a strong opponent to Tony Stark.

And when you add in Black Panther‘s post-credits scene, T’Challa may have a powerful ally standing beside him…

BLACK PANTHER POST-CREDIT SCENE: BUCKY RETURNS

That’s right Marvel fans, Bucky is BACK! Last seen being secreted into Wakanda and entrusted into the care of T’Challa by his best pal Steve, Bucky (Sebastian Stan) has awoken. The specifics are intentionally vague, and with good reason. According to director Ryan Coogler, the Black Panther post-credits scenes weren’t ordered by Marvel Studios at all. The decision was made by his own creative team to address the elephant in the room, post Civil War.

If Bucky isn’t going to be pulled out of his induced hibernation to help back up T’Challa, he definitely needs to make an appearance once the story’s over. And so he does in Black Panther‘s post-credits scene. Bucky is shown living on the outskirts of Wakanda’s capitol, where he can be stumbled upon and crytpically teased by some children passing by. He is still without his new arm – the “upgrade” seen in Infinity War‘s trailer.

Shuri shows up to tell him that he still has much to learn, but going on what’s already been teased ahead of the next Avengers, fans may know more about Bucky’ present and future than even HE does.

BUCKY RETURNS AS A HERO… WE THINK

After Bucky’s scene rolls, fans can finally understand just who Shuri was referring to when calling Everett Ross “another white boy” for her to look after. The first is Bucky, even though the end of Civil War implied that it would be T’Challa, or his top scientific minds overseeing Steve’s friend. In the end, it was his own sister, possessing a mind rivaling that of Tony Stark (we’re probably being generous… to Tony). While the Black Panther scene favors mystery over answers, fans need look no further than the Infinity War Prelude comic released by Marvel. And the comic picks up immediately after Steve’s scene comes to a close.


Fans looking for a full breakdown of the comic’s explanation for Bucky’s brainwashing “reboot” should pick up the issue themselves (get a bonus glimpse of Captain America fighting ISIS with Widow and Falcon). But to make a long story short, Shuri compiles a digital replica of Bucky’s brain to treat his damage without rattling his psyche any further. We don’t know exactly how much time passes before she solves the problem, but she claims she has. After separating the traumatic, Steve-Rogers-focused memories that HYDRA used to brainwash him from the conditioning, Bucky can be at peace. At least, that’s the plan.

It certainly seems like Bucky Barnes is his old self again. When he wakes up, Shuri believes that he can be the man he used to be, fighting alongside his friend Steve in World War II. That explains why he’s fighting beside Steve and T’Challa come Infinity War, and with a new arm made of Wakandan tech – which could be either a gift, or a dark sign that his life of warfare is far from over.

In the end, it may be the name he’s referred to by those Wakandan children that spells out his true destiny…