As a comic hero, he became a black icon of pop culture.

Boseman played the title hero in “Black Panther,” the first superhero movie to feature almost exclusively black actors in front of and behind the camera.

Mario Anzuoni / Reuters

When Chadwick Boseman crossed his arms over his chest, his fans’ eyes lit up. “Wakanda forever!” They yelled and crossed their arms too. The identifying mark of King T’Challa and his warriors from the movie “Black Panther” went around the world.

In the role of the Marvel superhero, Boseman became a popular cultural champion among African Americans. “Black Panther,” released in 2018, was not just the first major Hollywood production in which black actors participated almost exclusively in front of and behind the camera. The film also told a fascinating black empowerment fantasy: of a fictional African state called Wakanda that didn’t appear on any map, but was technologically and militarily far superior to Western nations.

Boseman was the leader of this warrior nation in a black skin-tight, masked superhero costume, leaping as energetically as the black panther for which his heroic movie character is named. Boseman has played the role since 2016 and his first appearance in “Captain America: Civil War” four times.

“Wakanda forever!” Boseman became world famous as the Marvel superhero Black Panther.

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As it turns out now, Boseman filmed most of these physically challenging performances while already under treatment. As his family announced on Twitter, his colon cancer was first diagnosed in 2016. During this time, Boseman became a Hollywood superstar, with “Black Panther” grossing more than $ 1.3 billion at the box office worldwide. world and receiving three Oscars.

As an actor, Boseman was a latecomer. Born in 1977 to a nurse and laborer in the US state of South Carolina, he later studied directing in Washington DC and acting in Oxford, UK. He won his first major movie role at the age of 35: In the biopic “42” (2013), Boseman played the American baseball player Jackie Robinson, who was exposed to racist abuse by fans and opponents during his race.

Acting balancing act

Boseman still characterized himself in this role with great restraint, but already with the next one, in the James Brown biopic “Get On Up,” he completely stepped out of himself. The Godfather of Soul was a force of nature on stage, and the then-unknown Boseman didn’t skimp on it. “The idea of ​​playing James Brown intimidated me at first,” Boseman said in 2014 at the Zurich Film Festival, which opened with “Get On Up.” «I had to put all my energy on paper. To play the hardest-working man in show business, I had to become the hardest-working man in show business myself. “

This balancing act between the introverted Jackie Robinson and the outgoing James Brown left a mark on the executive floor of Hollywood’s major studios, most notably on Marvel boss Kevin Feige, who later spoke about the cast of Black Panther’s role. : “Chadwick was our only option from the beginning. “In fact, he played the role of the superhero not only with great influence, but with just as great a sensitivity.

“You adored it”

His last film appearance before his death, in Spike Lee’s Netflix production “Give 5 Bloods,” has something almost prophetic about it. Boseman is seen again as the leader, this time of a group of African American soldiers in the Vietnam War. Five decades later, they return as veterans to the place where the same leader lost his life. “Chad is a superhero, his character is like Christ,” Spike Lee said of his lead actor. “We turned it on from above during filming, as if the sky was shining on it. Because his comrades in arms adored him. “

Boseman, who died of cancer on August 28 (local time), was also adored by his colleagues in Hollywood. “He was a gentle soul and a brilliant artist, whose iconic performances will be with us forever,” actor Denzel Washington said of Boseman’s death. Star presenter Oprah Winfrey was quoted as follows: “Between operations and chemotherapy she showed this greatness, which requires courage and strength, such is dignity.” “Rest in power, King!” Wrote Angela Bassett, who played Boseman’s mother in “Black Panther.”