Chadwick Boseman — a magnetic actor who brought trailblazing Marvel superhero Black Panther to the big screen in a career also highlighted by his portrayals of real-life icons Jackie Robinson in “42,†James Brown in “Get on Up†and Thurgood Marshall in “Marshall†— died Friday. He was 43.
Boseman had privately waged a four-year battle with colon cancer, according to a statement posted from his official Twitter account. He was first diagnosed with Stage 3 colon cancer in 2016, the same year he made his debut as comics superhero King T’Challa, aka Black Panther, in “Captain America: Civil War.â€
Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige and actors Viola Davis and Mark Ruffalo are among those mourning the death of “Black Panther’s†Chadwick Boseman.
“A true fighter, Chadwick persevered through it all and brought you many of the films you have come to love so much,†read the statement. “From ‘Marshall’ to ‘Da 5 Bloods,’ August Wilson’s ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ and several more, all were filmed during and between countless surgeries and chemotherapy. It was the honor of his career to bring King T’Challa to life in ‘Black Panther.’â€
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Reactions on social media were swift and stunned at the unexpected news.
“Heartbroken. My friend and fellow Bison Chadwick Boseman was brilliant, kind, learned, and humble,†Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) wrote on Twitter. “He left too early but his life made a difference. Sending my sincere condolences to his family.â€
Chadwick Boseman portrayed baseball trailblazer Jackie Robinson in “42.â€
(D. Stevens / Associated Press)
Born in South Carolina, Boseman graduated from Howard University and started his career in theater and television before breaking out in the 2013 sports biopic “42†as baseball legend Robinson. In 2014, he co-starred opposite Kevin Costner in the football drama “Draft Day†as a top NFL prospect, then made an electrifying lead turn as Brown, the Godfather of Soul himself, in the musical biopic “Get on Up.â€
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It was while promoting “Get on Up†in Europe that he got the call for the role that would change his career. As Black Panther, the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first Black superhero, Boseman became the face of Wakanda to millions of fans around the world and helped usher in a new and inclusive era of superhero blockbusters. “Black Panther,†directed by Ryan Coogler, was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including best picture. It earned more than $1 billion at the worldwide box office and remains the fourth-highest-grossing movie of all time in the U.S. (not adjusted for inflation).
“Chadwick’s passing is absolutely devastating,†wrote Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige in a statement. “He was our T’Challa, our Black Panther, and our dear friend. Each time he stepped on set, he radiated charisma and joy, and each time he appeared on screen, he created something truly indelible. He embodied a lot of amazing people in his work, and nobody was better at bringing great men to life. He was as smart and kind and powerful and strong as any person he portrayed. Now he takes his place alongside them as an icon for the ages. The Marvel Studios family deeply mourns his loss, and we are grieving tonight with his family.â€
Chadwick Boseman was full of wisdom Sunday night as he and the cast of “Black Panther†received the ensemble cast in a motion picture award at the 2019 SAG Awards.
As Boseman continued to expand the role of T’Challa in the Marvel universe, appearing in a total of four MCU films, including “Avengers: Infinity War†and “Avengers: Endgame,†he also added variety and producing power to his film repertoire. He starred in the action drama “Message from the King,†which he also executive produced; “Marshall,†which he co-produced; and “21 Bridges,†which he produced.
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Earlier this year, he earned critical raves for his riveting performance in Spike Lee’s Netflix drama “Da 5 Bloods†as “Stormin’†Norman Earl Holloway, the fiery lost leader of a squad of Black soldiers in the Vietnam War.
“The projects that I end up doing, that I want to be involved with in any way, have always been projects that will be impactful, for the most part, to my people — to Black people,†said Boseman. “To see Black people in ways which you have not seen them before.â€
Boseman had completed filming on another Netflix project, the 1920s-set musical drama “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,†adapted from the play by Wilson, with Viola Davis and Colman Domingo, due for release later this year.
“Chadwick was a superhero on screen and in life, and it’s impossible to imagine working at the level he has while valiantly battling his illness,†said Netflix co-CEO and Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos in a statement. “His legacy as a person and an artist will inspire millions. Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family during this difficult time.â€
Actor Chadwick Boseman died Aug. 28 at the age of 43.
Boseman’s Oscar-winning co-star Davis tweeted, “Chadwick ... no words to express my devastation of losing you. Your talent, your spirit, your heart, your authenticity ... It was an honor working beside you, getting to know you ... May flights of angels sing thee to thy heavenly rest.â€
Boseman was set to star in and produce the samurai action story “Yasuke,†set in 16th century Japan, for his own production banner, Xception Content, and was poised to reprise his Marvel role in “Black Panther 2,†which has not begun production.
“We all know what it’s like to be told that there is not a place for you to be featured — yet you are young, gifted and black,†he said. “We know what it’s like to be told, ‘There’s not a screen for you to be featured on, a stage for you to be featured on.’
“And that is what we went to work with every day … we knew that we had something special that we wanted to give the world — that we could be full human beings in the roles that we were playing, that we could create a world that exemplified a world that we wanted to see,†he said.
“We knew that we had something that we wanted to give.â€
Long before he was cast as the first black superhero of the modern Marvel era, and before he brought the Avengers-adjacent King T’Challa of Wakanda to life in his own groundbreaking standalone tentpole, Chadwick Boseman was keeping notes on what a “Black Panther†movie should be.
Just four years ago, shortly after making his onscreen debut in the Marvel universe, Boseman reflected on his run of playing real-life trailblazers, each of whom made their own indelible marks on Black culture and history.
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“There’s that ‘first’ thing that you can apply. They’re sort of mavericks, taste-makers, trendsetter, setting precedents,†he mused to The Times, still months away from starting production on “Black Panther.†“As far as who those people are, they’re leaders.
“Am I like that? I’m just playing them. That’s for somebody else to really explore, but I’m incredibly blessed to be able to do that,†he said. “I know that that’s not a normal thing for this industry, and hopefully it helps to change that fact. If it does, then you can put me in that category.â€
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Kobe Bryant, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sean Connery and more. (Los Angeles Times)
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Rafer Johnson, winner of the 1960 Olympic decathlon gold medal, was a man whose legacy was interwoven with Los Angeles history, beginning with his performances as a world-class athlete at UCLA and punctuated by the night in 1968 when he helped disarm Robert F. Kennedy’s assassin at the Ambassador Hotel. Johnson lit the Olympic flame at the opening of the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles. He was 86. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
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With his quick wit and easy smile, Alex Trebek drove the game show “Jeopardy!†up the ratings charts and became a welcome television host in America’s living rooms. As the quiz show rolled through the decades, Trebek remained a comfortable fit — in a 2014 Reader’s Digest poll, Trebek ranked as the eighth-most trusted person in the United States, right behind Bill Gates and 51 spots above Oprah Winfrey. He was 80. (Los Angeles Times)
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Guitarist Eddie Van Halen’s speed and innovations along the fretboard inspired a generation of imitators as the band bearing his name rose to MTV stardom and multiplatinum sales over 10 consecutive albums. The streak made Van Halen one of the most successful bands in rock history, including two albums that reached diamond status (10 million copies sold): 1978’s debut “Van Halen†and 1984’s “1984.†He was 65. (Wibbitz/Getty)
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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg championed women’s rights — first as a trailblazing civil rights attorney who methodically chipped away at discriminatory practices, then as the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court, and finally as an unlikely pop culture icon. A feminist hero dubbed Notorious RBG, Ginsburg became the leading voice of the court’s liberal wing, best known for her stinging dissents on a bench that mostly skewed right since her 1993 appointment. She was 87. (Kiichiro Sato / Associated Press)
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Chadwick Boseman’s breakout role was playing Dodger Jackie Robinson in the 2013 sports biopic “42.†The next year, he made an electrifying lead turn as James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, in “Get on Up.†Then came the role that would change his career: As Black Panther, the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s first Black superhero, Boseman became the face of Wakanda to millions of fans around the world and helped usher in a new and inclusive era of superhero blockbusters. He was 43. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
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Sumner Redstone outmaneuvered rivals to assemble one of America’s leading entertainment companies, now called ViacomCBS, which boasts CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Showtime, the Simon & Schuster book publisher and Paramount Pictures movie studio. Unlike contemporaries Rupert Murdoch and Ted Turner, Redstone was not a visionary, but rather a hard-charging lawyer and deal maker who pursued power and wealth through the accumulation of content companies. He was 97.
(Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
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Regis Philbin reigned for decades as the comfortable and sometimes cantankerous morning host of “Live,†first with Kathie Lee Gifford and later Kelly Ripa, above. He earned Emmy nominations by the armful, hosted New Year’s Eve specials, rode in parades, set a record for the most face-time hours on television and helped reinvigorate prime-time game shows with “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.†He was 88. (Charles Sykes / Associated Press)
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Rep. John Lewis famously shed his blood at the foot of a Selma, Ala., bridge in a 1965 demonstration for Black voting rights, and went on to become a 17-term Democratic member of Congress. An inspirational figure for decades, Lewis was one of the last survivors among members of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s inner circle. He was 80. (Mark Humphrey / Associated Press)
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Country music firebrand and fiddler Charlie Daniels started out as a session musician, which included playing on Bob Dylan’s 1969 album “Nashville Skyline,†and beginning in the early 1970s toured endlessly with his own band, sometimes doing 250 shows a year. In 1979, Daniels had a crossover smash with “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,†which topped the country chart, hit No. 3 on the pop chart and was voted single of the year by the Country Music Assn. He was 83. (Rick Diamond / Getty Images for IEBA)
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Carl Reiner first came to national attention in the 1950s on Sid Caesar’s “Your Show of Shows,†where he wrote alongside Mel Brooks, Neil Simon and other comedy legends. He later created “The Dick Van Dyke Show,†one of TV’s most fondly remembered sitcoms, and directed hit films including “The Comic†(1969), starring Van Dyke; “Where’s Poppa?†(1970), starring George Segal and Ruth Gordon; “Oh, God!†starring George Burns and John Denver; and four films starring Steve Martin. He was 98. (Associated Press )
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The flamboyant, piano-pounding Little Richard roared into the rock ‘n’ roll spotlight in the 1950s with hits such as “Tutti-Frutti,†“Long Tall Sally†and “Good Golly, Miss Molly.†The Georgia native’s raucous sound fused gospel fervor and R&B sexuality, profoundly influencing the Beatles, James Brown (who succeeded him in one of his early bands), Jimi Hendrix (one of his backup musicians in the mid-’60s) and Bruce Springsteen. He was 87. (Boris Yaro / Los Angeles Times)
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Don Shula was the NFL’s winningest coach, leading the 1972 Miami Dolphins to the league’s only undefeated season. He coached the Baltimore Colts to one Super Bowl and the Dolphins to five, winning Lombardi Trophies after the 1972 and ’73 seasons. He was 90. (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak crushed dissent for decades until the 2011 Arab Spring movement drove him from power. During his presidency, which spanned nearly 30 years, he protected Egypt’s stability as intifadas roiled Israel and the Palestinian territories, the U.S. led two wars against Iraq, Iran fomented militant Shiite Islam across the region and global terrorism complicated the divide between East and West. He was 91. (Sameh Sherif / AFP/Getty Images)
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Among his 40-odd films, burly Brian Dennehy played a sheriff who jailed Rambo in “First Blood,†a serial killer in “To Catch a Killer†and a corrupt sheriff in “Silverado.†On Broadway, he was awarded Tonys for his roles in “Death of a Salesman†(1999) and “Long Day’s Journey Into Night†(2003). He was 81. (Dia Dipasupil)
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Singer-songwriter John Prine broke onto the folk scene in 1971 with a self-titled album that included two songs brought to broader audiences by Bette Midler and Bonnie Raitt: “Hello in There†and “Angel From Montgomery,†respectively. In 2019, he was elected to the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He was 73. (Frazer Harrison / Getty Images for Stagecoach)
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Country singer Kenny Rogers racked up an impressive string of hits — initially as a member of The First Edition starting in the late 1960s and later as a solo artist and duet partner with Dolly Parton — and earned three Grammy Awards, 19 nominations and a slew of accolades from country-music awards shows. Country purists balked at his syrupy ballads, but his fans packed arenas that only the titans of rock could fill. He was 81. (Suzanne Mapes / Associated Press)
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Xerox researcher Larry Tesler pioneered concepts that made computers more user-friendly, including moving text through cut, copy and paste. In 1980, he joined Apple, where he worked on the Lisa computer, the Newton personal digital assistant and the Macintosh. He was 74. (AP)
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Ski industry pioneer Dave McCoy transformed a remote Sierra peak into the storied Mammoth Mountain Ski Area. Over six decades, it grew from a downhill depot for friends to a profitable operation of 3,000 workers and 4,000 acres of ski trails and lifts, a mecca for generations of skiers and boarders. He was 104. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
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Screen icon Kirk Douglas brought a clenched-jawed intensity to an array of heroes and heels, receiving Oscar nominations for his performances as an opportunistic movie mogul in the 1952 drama “The Bad and the Beautiful†and as Vincent van Gogh in the 1956 drama “Lust for Life.†As executive producer of “Spartacus,†Douglas helped end the Hollywood blacklist by giving writer Dalton Trumbo screen credit under his own name. He was 103. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
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“Queen of Suspense†Mary Higgins Clark became a perennial best-seller, writing or co-writing “A Stranger Is Watching,†“Daddy’s Little Girl†and more than 50 other favorites. Her sales topped 100 million copies, and many of her books, including “A Stranger is Watching†and “Lucky Day,†were adapted for movies and television. She was 92. (Associated Press)
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Fred Silverman was the head of programming at CBS, where he championed a string of hits including “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,†“All in the Family,†“MASH†and “The Jeffersons.†Later at ABC, he programmed “Laverne & Shirley,†“The Love Boat,†“Happy Days†and the 12-hour epic saga “Roots.†He was 82. (Associated Press)
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Former California Rep. Fortney “Pete†Stark Jr. represented the East Bay in Congress for 40 years. The influential Democrat helped craft the Affordable Care Act, the signature healthcare achievement of the Obama administration, and also created the 1986 law best known as COBRA, which allows workers to stay on their employer’s health insurance plan after they leave a job. He was 88. (Associated Press)
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News anchor Jim Lehrer appeared 12 times as a presidential debate moderator and helped build “PBS NewsHour†into an authoritative voice of public broadcasting. The program, first called “The Robert MacNeil Report†and then “The MacNeil-Lehrer Report,†became the nation’s first one-hour TV news broadcast in 1983. Lehrer was 85. (David McNew / Getty Images)
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Terry Jones was a founding member of the Monty Python troupe who wrote and performed for their early ’70s TV series and films including “Monty Python and the Holy Grail†in 1975 and “Monty Python’s Life of Brian†in 1979. After the Pythons largely disbanded in the 1980s, Jones wrote books on medieval and ancient history, presented documentaries, wrote poetry and directed films. He was 77. (Associated Press)
