Honoring Chadwick Boseman was never going to be simple, and everyone felt that the moment the ceremony began.
Five years after his passing at just 43, his family, closest friends, and longtime collaborators gathered in Hollywood to celebrate him with a long-overdue star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Viola Davis and others pay emotional tribute to Chadwick Boseman
Viola Davis took the mic first, already fighting back tears as she talked about how real Chadwick Boseman still feels to her. She said she just can’t bring herself to think of him as gone. “I have to believe that Chadwick is still alive. I can’t use the word gone or death, really,” Davis explained.
She remembered their deep conversations about “cap of success” and “transcendence”, something Chadwick lived every day. One memory that sticks with her is Chadwick always carrying his djembe drum wherever he went.
Davis got even more emotional as she talked about the sound of Chadwick’s drum carrying across the set. Davis called him a “conduit of divine,” and thanked him for guiding her towards her “purpose.”
“I thank him for what he left behind in me, which is a burning amber that always guides me to a higher meaning of my work and my purpose. This star, as beautiful as it is on the Walk of Fame, shines a whole lot less brightly than Chadwick does in heaven,” Davis added.
Ryan Coogler stepped up next and remembered the very first time they met and how they connected. Coogler also told the crowd about the time Chadwick sneaked into a hotel packed with press during the Creed promo tour, just so they could talk privately about what would later become Black Panther.
When Coogler asked how he did it, Chadwick just grinned and said, “That was the Panther.”
Coogler went on to say that Chadwick’s influence is still very much alive and guiding everyone who had the honor to work with him. He called Chadwick “our most incredible jewel,” saying he had a way of reflecting light that showed the greatness of his people and the shared humanity connecting us all.
Originally reported by Rishabh Shandilya for ComingSoon.
