Angela Bassett Calls Fans 'Smart' About New 'Black Panther' Theories

Angela Bassett simply won't crack -- and trust us, we tried -- on the new 'Black Panther' buzz surrounding Letitia Wright, but she is tipping her hat to Marvel's "smart" fans, and Disney ... for not recasting Chadwick Boseman's character.

We got Angela at Wally's in L.A. ... and she knows fans are excited to see the sequel, but she's sticking to an apparent code of silence about who's slipping into the super suit seen in the flick's new trailer.

She does admit the fans are smart, though -- saying Letitia's tech-savvy scientist character, Shuri, would be great to take the reins. Still, no confirmation from AB.

She gives us one interesting hint, saying the keen-eyed can "follow the signs and symbols."

Many have noted, for example, the white dot pattern on the mystery Panther's face to bear some serious resemblance to Shuri's.

Whether she's referring to metaphorical "signs and symbols" is unclear.

As for Chadwick's character, Angela got a little choked up telling us Marvel's decision to not recast the role was the right thing to do ... even though a solid percentage of fans were hoping a change would be made.