In honor of his recent accomplishment of gaining his very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Chadwick Boseman is a man who deserves to be written about and remembered. Chadwick Boseman was born on November 29th, 1976, in South Carolina. During his years at T.L. Hanna High School, he was involved in speech and debate and basketball, which actually got him recruited by colleges for basketball. Even with this, though, Boseman always had an interest and skill in the arts. In his junior year, he wrote his very first screenplay and staged it called Crossroads. Following his high school graduation, Boseman attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., where he was able to study under prominent names such as Al Freeman Jr. and Phylicia Rashad, who became his notable mentors. Phylicia Rashad, in 1998, helped raise funds (a considerable amount from her friend, Denzel Washington) for Boseman and his peers to attend the summer program of the British American Drama Academy in London. While in college, Boseman also took courses in film studies from New York City’s Digital Film Academy before graduating from Howard University in 2000 with a Bachelor of Arts in directing.
Chadwick Boseman began his career in Brooklyn, New York City, as a drama league directing fellow, where he directed productions such as The Colored Museum by George C. Wolfe. During this time, he wrote many screenplays like Rhyme Deferred and Hieroglyphic Graffiti, and he also began to become a popular stage actor, even winning an AUDELCO award in 2002 for one of his roles. Boseman finally joined our TV screens in 2003 when he was cast in an episode of Third Watch. He went on to play roles in Law & Order, Cold Case, CSI: NY, and the soap opera All My Children. However, it wasn’t until 2008 that Chadwick Boseman decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue an official acting career.
Boseman was cast in his first recurring role for nine episodes in Lincoln Heights (2008-2009). He also got his first feature in a movie the same year he moved to LA, The Express: The Ernie Davis Story. Before he landed a regular role in Persons Unknown (2010). Boseman started considering directing instead of acting, but then in 2013, Boseman got his breakthrough role in the movie 42, where he received the main lead. For the next couple of years, Boseman continued to act in movies like Draft Day, where he received much support due to his performance. Then in 2016, Chadwick Boseman made his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as T’Challa, aka the Black Panther, in Captain America: Civil War. Despite minimal screentime and little background on the character, he was praised for his performance and served as a promising character. He returned to the role in Black Panther (2018) directed by Ryan Coogler. This movie gave us the background and insight into T’Challa and his home in Wakanda, Africa. In simple words, this movie was amazing. It became one of the highest-grossing films, won many awards, and got Boseman the award of “Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture” from the NAACP Image Awards. He acted out this role a couple more times in Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and voiced T’Challa in Disney+’s What If…? Despite the glory of the role and his amazing acting, Chadwick Boseman was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2016. This makes his performance in the movies so much more admirable, as he performed all his own stunts and gave it his all. Boseman also acted in 21 Bridges and the show Da 5 Bloods while battling cancer. Boseman never really spoke publicly about his battle with cancer, instead choosing to put on a show every time he acted out a role, even though by 2020, with treatment, the cancer had progressed to stage four.
Chadwick Boseman unfortunately lost his battle with cancer in his home, surrounded by his wife and family, on August 28th, 2020. Chadwick’s death was heartbreaking to say the least. Many fellow actors expressed their sorrow, but also viewers and fans of his were upset by the news. Chadwick Boseman is a man to remember. He leaves behind a legacy of films and shows to be appreciated, but also his kindness, as he was never afraid to speak out against the stereotypes African Americans face. Chadwick Boseman was taken from this world too soon, and he is always going to be missed, but we are lucky enough that we can always turn on a movie or show of ours and allow him to light up the screens with his acting and overall presence.