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It’s hard not to praise (panther?) Chadwick Boseman as we process our grief after his tragic and unexpected death on Friday.
Yes, he was a movie star. But he was more than that. He was also one of those rare celebrities who actually used his platform to do genuine good in the world. This was especially true after Black Panther made him a superstar.
Marvel’s 2018 success quickly established itself as a groundbreaking movie in theaters. It’s a multi-million dollar blockbuster from a major studio featuring a mostly black cast in a story that, through its main villain and his portrayal of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, focuses on racial issues.
The incredible critical and financial success of Black Panther catapulted Boseman to a level of stardom that few celebrities will achieve. And in almost every documented turn, he carried it as if it were a responsibility rather than a gift.
1. A moment of NBA slam dunk
In 2018 on February 17, one day later Black Panther hit theaters, Boseman attended an Indiana Pacers game with co-star Michael B. Jordan. When Victor Oladipo of the Indiana Pacers approached the two actors on the court, Boseman presented him with a Black Panther mask. The two exchanged the Wakandan salute with their arms crossed, after which Oladipo put on the mask and performed a flashy dunk.
The moment featured more than one celebrity interacting with another celebrity in a photo shoot. All interaction spoke directly with Black PantherIntegration of black culture. Wakanda may not be a real place, but the mutual greeting between the two men amounted to an implicit acknowledgment of Black Pantherimportance and impact even in the first hours of your success.
2. Greet fans in person, as a surprise.
If you are aware of social media, then you already know that this one has been circulating.
Boseman and Fallon followed a devilishly delicious plan for the Black Panther The star’s late-night appearance in February 2018. The setting saw fans of the film being escorted to a room where they could address a monitor that was recording their messages for Boseman. Or so they thought.
In reality, Boseman was hiding behind a nearby curtain, listening to everything and barging in, to the absolute delight of every fan, at the end of a message. His friendly and fun interactions with ordinary people speak volumes, but the messages themselves resonate well as a reflection of what Boseman’s lead role in one of the great Hollywood franchises of all time means to the world at large and to everyone. blacks in particular.
3. Howard University commencement speech
Just a couple of weeks after the April 2018 release of Avengers: Infinity War, Boseman returned to his HBCU alma mater, Howard University, to deliver a graduation speech. During the speech, the actor praised the power of the protest by speaking about his own experiences as a student that pushed the university to improve.
The comments were especially notable just a month after Howard students protested to demand more housing for younger students, the disarmament of campus police, more targeted action on sexual assault cases, and caps on tuition increases.
“The fact that you have struggled with this university that you loved is a sign that you can use your education to improve the world that you are entering,” Boseman said at the time. To all appearances, he lived that truth every day in his public life as a celebrity.
4. He gifted his MTV award to an IRL hero
In June 2018, nearly two months after James Shaw, Jr. heroically acted to stop a shooting at the Tennessee Waffle House, Boseman made a beautiful gesture. When he took the MTV stage to accept the award for “Best Hero” at the annual MTV Movie Awards, it turned things around.
“Receiving an award for playing a superhero is amazing, but it’s even better to acknowledge the heroes we have in real life,” Boseman said before introducing Shaw and calling him to the podium. Then he handed Shaw his trophy. “This is going to live in your house,” Boseman said.
5. He fought to keep imperialism out of Black Panther
The accent you hear from the natives of Wakandan is inspired by Xhosa, one of the official languages in South Africa and Zimbabwe. However, that’s not the sound that Marvel had originally envisioned for its Wakandan characters.
In late summer 2018, Boseman discussed Black Panthervocal inflections during an appearance in The Hollywood ReporterChatter Podcast Awards. There, he revealed that Marvel had initially given him a choice between a British or an American accent. But Boseman resisted, defending the Xhosa accent he had been working on with dialect coach Beth McGuire, and which had been inspired by T’Chaka actor John Kani’s own South African heritage. (T’Chaka is the father of Boseman’s T’Challa in the MCU.)
According to Boseman, Marvel felt that Xhosa might be “too much for the audience to accept.” And Boseman didn’t like that. “I felt like a deal breaker,” he said. “I was like, ‘No, this is such a big factor that if we lose it right now, what else are we going to throw away to make people feel comfortable?”
6. His 2019 SAG Awards speech
“To be young, talented and black. We all know what it is to be told that there is no place for you to be introduced, but you are young, talented and black. We know what it is to be told, let’s say there is no screen on the to appear, a stage in which to appear. We know what it is to be the tail and not the head. We know what it is to be below and not above.
“And that’s what we were going to work with every day. Because we knew, not that we would be around during awards season and that it would win a billion dollars, but we knew that we had something special that we wanted to give the world.”
‘Nuff said.
7. Your daily efforts to cheer up those around you.
Twitter anecdotes should always be taken with a grain of salt. But there’s no reason to think that this Los Angeles-based artist’s first-hand account is anything more than what he’s describing.
30 minutes later, they are still chatting. Chadwick took the time to give this guy some advice, talk about what it’s like to be a black man in this industry, how to handle it. The actor thanks you for your time and continues to search for books.
– Trevor Reece (@trevorcopter) August 29, 2020
He didn’t want thanks. He just wanted to make sure this young man was cared for and had access to the resources he would need to be successful. Chadwick Boseman was the King of Wakanda. He was James Brown and Jackie Robinson. But above all that, he was a good man.
– Trevor Reece (@trevorcopter) August 29, 2020
8. Things like this in general
One of the most talked about aspects of Black Panther This is how he gives black children (and indeed, all children) a heroic role model to look up to that breaks out of the traditional (read: bleached) Hollywood mold. The film’s existence is evidence of an ongoing change that has gripped Hollywood in recent years, yes, but Boseman bowed.
Again and again, went out of his way to cheer people up in private and make the unnoticed shine publicly. Used your platform to help make the world a better place. He did the work.
Rest in power, Chadwick Boseman. We had very little time to devote to his talents and goodwill, but it was a gift nonetheless. You will be missed.
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