Lupita Nyong’o and others took to social media on Monday to honor the late “Black Panther” star Chadwick Boseman on the third anniversary of his death.
The “12 Years a Slave” Oscar winner shared on her Instagram a personal black and white image of Boseman at an airport in South Korea from 2018, reflecting that she felt “a singular pain” at the news of his death three years ago and remembering that “the confusion was so profound that it took months to trust the feeling of joy again.”
But the post wasn’t meant for Nyong’o to mourn; instead, she celebrated his life and the joys that they shared together.
“This is a photo I took on film at the airport as we arrived in South Korea in 2018. We had just learned to do the baby heart with our fingers. Here Chadwick was adding his suave flare,” she wrote. “We spent a glorious 72 hours there, and the memory fills me with so much joy.
“Death is hard to understand, maybe even harder to accept,” she continued. “But the love generated from the life he lived will fuel every anniversary marking his absence.”
Nyong’o concluded that “Chadwick may no longer be in our photos, but he will always be in our hearts.”
“Black Panther” costar Letitia Wright also posted to her Instagram story to commemorate the three-year anniversary, writing simply, “Always celebrating you king. Love always x.” Her post linked back to an Instagram Reel from November 2022 showing a behind-the-scenes video of Boseman and Wright with fellow costars Angela Bassett and Danai Gurira.
“Made with love, for love and love always. It belongs to you now, I pray it helps you on your path,” that post read. “You’re always in our hearts bro.”
And in a particularly moving tribute to the late actor, Boseman’s widow, Simone Ledward Boseman, also posted to her personal Instagram, sharing a poetic entry to what she wrote were “excerpts from a notebook.”
“When the angels came and sought him, they found him by my side. There where his feet had brought him, I was his, and he was mine,” she wrote. “Loving you into the ether, beyond the beyond, forever my guiding light.”
Commenting on Nyongo’s post on Monday, Emmy winner Kerry Washington also extended her love on the anniversary: “We miss him dearly. Sending you love,” she wrote.
Boseman died Aug. 28, 2020, at age 43 following a four-year fight with colon cancer.
“A true fighter, Chadwick persevered through it all, and brought you many of the films you have come to love so much,” a family statement read at the time. “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.’”
Following his death, Ryan Coogler’s Marvel sequel “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” was rewritten to chart the aftermath of the death of Boseman’s character, T’Challa, and ultimately served as a timeless tribute to both the actor and the character in ways both “entertaining and affecting,” TheWrap wrote in its review.
