At the premiere of Wakanda Forever, the stars are paying tribute in subtle ways to the late actor Chadwick Boseman who died in August 2020, the actor played the role of both the Blake Panther and king T’Challa. The stars were interviewed at the premiere of the fil, they talked about what Wakanda Forever means to them after the death of Boseman. The director of the Ryan Coogler wore white and a necklace with Chadwick Boseman’s face in honor of the late Chadwick Boseman, he said he wore white to honor Boseman and to remember all the good things he had done. Boseman was secretly battling colon cancer, so his death was sudden to his cast mates. Talking about how they were all surprised by news of the actor’s death, Coogler said the sudden death of Boseman came as a great distress to them all, different types of things goes through you mind, your emotions will be all over the place, after everything, Coogler saibd the only thing they can do is to move forward with their lives, because that’s what the late Boseman would have wanted for them all.
Coogler who decided after Boseman’s death to take a break from Hollywood said he gained strength to come back to work because of Bosman. He said people like Boseman are rare breed, so to have met someone like him is a real blessing. Coogler said he went through the memories he shared with Boseman, from pictures and video clips, to remembering all those conversations they’ve had together, it motivated him to be able to work again. He said he got the cast back together, and everything just fell into place which make shooting for Wakanda Forever easier, Coogler praised the cast, saying they “did fantastic work” on the film.
In an interview with another cast of the film Angela Bassett, she talked about how Coogler is always the necklace with Boseman’s face on set and in his day to day life, so the late actor will always be with him. Bassett was grateful to Coogler, she said it felt like the late Boseman was always with them when they were filming the movie. She felt like that served as a source of strength for all the cast and crews during the shooting of the movie,
Love for Boseman is massive, from the fans of the franchise to the cast and crew, the actress said it was important to honor the late actor because without him, they couldn’t have done it. Bassett said they visited the grave of the late actor with his family before the shooting of the film. Even though they miss the late actor, they accepted his death for what it is, and they believe the actor will always be with them in their heart.
At the premiere with Letitia Wright, the actress praise Coogler for incorporating a part of Boseman in the film to honor him.