One of the most intriguing options for the new Black Panther would be Nakia (Lupita Nyong'o), the warrior–spy who also was T'Challa's trusted advisor and love interest. In the first movie, it's Nakia who turns out to have the "right" perspective on Wakanda's place in the world: neither isolationist, as T'Challa's family had kept it, nor vengeful, as Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan) tried to make it, but a source of help for those in need. She's both a capable warrior and a smart, insightful leader, giving her all the qualities that the next Wakandan leader needs.
Still, Nakia is not a member of the existing royal family so she doesn't step up to become the new Black Panther. Instead, she helps Shuri make her transition into the panther suit after the princess re-creates and takes the Heart-Shaped Herb, where she meets Killmonger in the ancestral plane and completes her transformation.
