Black Panther director Ryan Coogler has made an emotional tribute to late actor Chadwick Boseman upon the premiere of his second film, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Speaking on the Comic-Con stage, Coogler took the chance to remember his late friend. You can watch the clip above.
“Five years ago, we sat here, and we premiered the footage for Black Panther one. And sitting next to me, to my left was our ‘T’Challah’, the late, great, Chadwick Boseman,” says Coogler.
Before he could continue, the crowd erupted into a long applause for the actor who sadly died last year after quietly battling colon cancer for years. He was just 43.
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Coogler then launched into a sweet anecdote.
“The cast, including Chad, they hadn’t seen the footage yet, so when we played it, he was excited,” he explains.
According to the director, as he excitedly watched the trailer, Boseman grabbed onto his shoulder and was squeezing hard.
“If you ever saw Chad in person, you’d know he had these enormous hands,” joked Coogler, “he was really, really strong.”
“When it finished, I couldn’t even lift my arm,” he joked. “I felt his hand for the rest of that day for a few hours.”
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He then added some more emotional words: “Standing here and listening to that music with all those artists, and thinking about it now, I promise you, I can feel his hand on me right now.”
He added: “Chad is no longer with us physically, but his spirit, his passion, his genius, his pride in his culture, and the impact that he made on this industry will be felt forever.”
The second film is due to arrive in theatres in November this year and will serve as a conclusion to the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 4. You can watch the trailer above.
In the trailer for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, it includes a peek at the way late actor Chadwick Boseman will be remembered.
During the teaser, a poster of Boseman is pictured on a wall, which appears as a tribute to him and his character, T’Challa.
Boseman played the lead character in the film, who was the heir to the hidden but advanced kingdom of “Wakanda”.
It is unclear yet how the director has woven in the passing of Boseman into Black Panther’s storyline.
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