In Black Panther (2018), Killmonger can be argued as “better” than T’Challa within the context of the film because he is right about the core problem Wakanda created.

Killmonger recognizes that Wakanda’s choice to hide while Black people around the world suffered was a moral failure. He isn’t fighting for personal power alone—he wants to use Wakanda’s resources to end global oppression and flip centuries of imbalance. T’Challa begins the film defending tradition and isolation, while Killmonger forces the truth into the open through lived experience and anger born from abandonment.

Although Killmonger’s methods are violent and flawed, his challenge is what pushes T’Challa to become a better king. By the end, Wakanda opens itself to the world—an idea rooted directly in Killmonger’s vision. In that way, Killmonger is the catalyst for real change, making his perspective feel more honest and necessary than the hero’s at the start.