After winning a Golden Globe last week for his performance in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, the late Chadwick Boseman earned yet another trophy last night at the Critics Choice Awards.
Boseman’s role as Levee Green in the Netflix drama earned him the Best Actor recognition at the 26th annual awards, and his widow Taylor Simone Ledward accepted the trophy on his behalf, just as she did at the Globes. The victory comes over six months after Boseman died on Aug. 28 in a private battle with colon cancer.
“Wow. It has to be said aloud that for those of us who know Chad intimately, personally, professionally, those he taught, those he gave a word of advice, those who taught him, it is so hard to find a celebratory feeling in these moments,” she said. “As proud as we are of him, yes, for his work, but even more just for who he is as a person.”
Ledward, who got engaged to the celebrated actor in 2019 and later privately married, added that his work “deserves this.”
“He would always thank God first and foremost in everything,” she said. “He would always honor his mother and his father. He would always acknowledge those who came before him, those who charted the path, those who gave him their gifts. … He may say something about the importance of this story. About the importance of Black voices telling Black stories. He may take this moment to give honor to August Wilson, one of the greatest playwrights of our time. And, as I recently read, societies grow great when all men plant trees in their shade. They know they may never sit, and our society may be a far cry from great, but I know that the seeds you planted will grow into forests. And one day we too will be tall enough to reach the heavens. Thank you Critics’ Choice, and thank you Chad.”
The film, directed by George C. Wolfe and written by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, is an adaptation of the Wilson play of the same name. It received eight nominations, taking home three; Best Actor, Best Hair and Makeup, and Best Costume Design.
