The Black Panther-based series Eyes of Wakanda is being told in animation for a very specific reason, according to the series creators. Set to debut on August 6, 2025, Eyes of Wakanda will be a four-part animated series that follows Wakandan warriors known as The Hatut Zaraze throughout history as they carry out dangerous missions around the globe to retrieve vibranium artifacts. Unlike past Marvel animated series like What If…?, X-Men ’97, or Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, Eyes of Wakanda will be the first animated MCU project taking place within the MCU’s Sacred Timeline and is thus canon to the events of the films and other Disney+ shows.
Eyes of Wakanda showrunner and series creator Todd Harris spoke with ComicBook.com and revealed why the Black Panther spin-off series was done in animation as opposed to live-action like the rest of the Sacred Timeline set MCU shows. It appears it was a budgetary reason, as with animation, the series creators could truly explore any location without worrying about location traveling or set decoration. The only limit was the animation of the artist involved. Harris said:

“Animation is the ultimate equalizer of locations. Egypt costs just as much as New York City, and the moon costs just as much as Ohio. Filming around the globe has inherent limitations that we just don’t have in animation. That freedom allowed us to reimagine an idealized version of an era that’s unaffected by human history.”

Eyes of Wakanda was first announced on February 1, 2021, as Ryan Coogler’s production company Proximity Media signed an exclusive five-year first-look deal with Disney television. The first project announced was an untitled Disney+ series set in Wakanda, but no further details were given at the time. Many assumed it would be a live-action series due to the likes of WandaVision airing on Disney+ at the time, and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and Loki being on the horizon later that year. While Black Panther: Wakanda Forever seemingly teased a few potential live-action series’, possibly around the Midnight Angels, the animated Eyes of Wakanda was later announced in December 2023.
The Legacy of the Black Panther in the MCU

Eyes of Wakanda’s decision to tell its story in animation is smart, as the series can take viewers to vast locations across time without worrying about adjusting its story to account for the budget. The MCU Disney+ series has gained a reputation for having highly high budgets. Unlike a feature film, however, the series doesn’t have box office revenue to help make back its cost.
Moon Knight reportedly cost $147 million, while Secret Invasion’s budget ballooned to $212 million due to numerous rewrites and heavy VFX series like She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and WandaVision reportedly cost $225 million. With Eyes of Wakanda seemingly taking place across different time periods with unique locations, in live-action, it likely would have been one of the MCU’s most costly shows, so animation was the right call.

Related

Rumored Recast of “Irreplaceable” Black Panther Favorite Will Have Fans Divided

There are several MCU character that have been recast, but this is one that seemed unlikely to ever happen.

Following the record-breaking success and critical acclaim that Black Panther received in 2018, the MCU seemed to make both King T’Challa and the world of Wakanda a big focus in the MCU, with later reports implying that Marvel Studios was looking at Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa, Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, and Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers to be the new lead faces of the franchise in Phase 4. Unfortunately, Chadwick Boseman passed away from colon cancer on August 28, 2020, at the age of 43.
Marvel Studios decided not to recast T’Challa, with Black Panther: Wakanda Forever tackling the issues of T’Challa’s death within the MCU as his sister Shuri becomes the new Black Panther. Eyes of Wakanda is a way for Marvel Studios to explore more of Wakanda’s culture and history in the absence of T’Challa, which further fleshes out the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that can pay off in future live-action projects.

Eyes of Wakanda