Between civil unrest, natural disasters, and the global pandemic, 2020 was a devastating year for many people around the world. But when asked what event made him cry the most last year, Michael B. Jordan admitted it was the unexpected death of Chadwick Boseman.
The 34-year-old actor recently opened up about his friendship with his Black Panther co-star and the grief he endured following the loss.
“Our relationship was a very personal one and had a lot of great moments—some that I couldn’t fully appreciate and fully understand until now,” Jordan said during an interview for Vanity Fair’s annual Hollywood Issue. “I wish I had more time to have our relationship evolve, and grow, and become closer and stronger.”
He continued: “We got a concentrated dose of Chadwick. He did more in his 43 years of life than most people have done in a lifetime. And he was here for the time he was supposed to be here, and he had his impact, and his legacy. That was clear with the abundance of love that he has gotten from people all over the world. There are generations of kids coming up that look to him. It’s incredible. And losing him was … Yeah, man, it hurt. It hurt a lot. That’s probably what made me cry the most this year.”
Boseman died nearly six months ago after a private years-long battle with colon cancer. At the time of his death, Boseman was expected to reprise his role as the titular superhero in Black Panther 2. It’s unclear how Marvel and Disney will address Boseman’s absence in future installments.
During an interview with People magazine last month, Jordan reflected on the bonds he formed with the Black Panther cast, and said he would be open to return to franchise as Killmonger.
“[I] had a really tough year losing somebody close to me. And what that means for that franchise is it was devastating,” Jordan said. “But being in that world in a character that I loved playing, and working with [writer/director Ryan Coogler] and all that good stuff, it’s family. We created a family over there. So to be able to be in that world again is something that, I think, will always be on the table in some capacity.”
