According to Weta VFX supervisor Chris White, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever had a 200-page bible that was exclusively devoted to Talokan, Namor's undersea kingdom.
In an interview with /Film, White talked about the lengthy production document. This was his first Marvel project, yet when they were getting started, he remarked, "There was a production bible of only Talokan." "And it was 200 pages long, describing their history as well as the tools they created, the building they erected, their effect, and how they traversed Central America.
It's incredible how much detail [Marvel Studios] put into the plot. Talokan may only last four or five minutes, but even before we joined in, they had already planned out a lot. The culture is incredibly diverse, just like everything else."
The inclusion of Talokan into the Marvel Cinematic Universe signifies a departure from the canonical Marvel Comics timeline, in which Namor ruled over Atlantis.
Tenoch Huerta, who plays Namor, affirmed that Atlantis will not be included in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever at San Diego Comic-Con 2022.
Huerta said at the time that the filmmakers had to choose between drawing influence from a genuine civilisation or from the buried realm of Greek myth (like the comics).
Ultimately, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever director Ryan Coogler, co-writer Joe Robert Cole, and the rest of the production team chose the latter choice, modelling Namor's realm after the historic Mayan culture.
According to Michael P. Shawver, editor of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Talokan was created to reflect Wakanda as well.
The "shared cultural trauma between [Namor's] people and [Shuri's] people," which also forms the basis of the emotional bond between Namor and Shuri, was highlighted in the final edit of the movie, according to a recent statement by Shawver.
Despite some fans interpreting a romantic undertone into the connection between Namor and Shuri, he stated that he and co-editors Kelley Dixon and Jennifer Lame meant for Namor to act as a stand-in older brother role for Shuri.
Shawver also said that a subplot in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever where Namor, Shuri, and Riri Williams collaborate in Talokan was originally included.
He claimed that by having Shuri and Riri combine their own scientific knowledge, these sequences were intended to strengthen their friendship.
According to Shawver, the subplot was ultimately cut to shorten the sequel's total running time and make the Shuri/Riri connection more clearly defined by sequences that were inserted during reshoots.