'Black Panther' Star Chadwick Boseman Dies at 43

The tragic news was announced on the actor's social media accounts Friday night following his years-long battle with cancer.

Chadwick Boseman
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Image via Getty/Gareth Cattermole

Chadwick Boseman

Chadwick Boseman has died at the age of 43, following a years-long battle with cancer.

The tragic news was confirmed Friday in a statement shared on the actor's Twitter account. The post stated Boseman was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer in 2016—which he never publicly disclosed—and continued to fight it as it progressed to stage 4. 

"A true fighter, Chadwick persevered through it all, and brought you many of the films you have come to love so much," the statement red. "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."

The South Carolina native graduated from Howard University in 2000 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in directing. He would go on to graduate from New York City's Digital Film Academy, where he participated in the Digital Filmmaking Program.

"[Boseman] came here talented, focused, sharp," Patrick DiRenna, president of the Digital Film Academy, told Forbes in 2019. "... I remember his face and the level of concentration in his eyes. You could see internal processes working," DiRenna recalls. "At that time he was building himself. I could see he was putting the pieces together."

Boseman's early on-screen work included roles on TV series like Third Watch, Law & Order, and ER. He would go on to play sports legend Jackie Robinson in the 2013 film 42, and James Brown in 2014's Get on Up. However, he is most known for his role as T'Challa / Black Panther in the MCU. In addition to leading the standalone Black Panther film, he also appeared in Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame. Boseman was expected to reprise his role in the much-anticipated Black Panther sequel.

Boseman is survived by his wife, Taylor Simone Ledward.

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South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced that the flags at the Statehouse will be lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset Sunday. The flags will then be given to Boseman's family at the appropriate time.

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