LOS ANGELES: Chadwick Boseman, best known for his star turn in the blockbuster Marvel superhero film Black Panther, has died at the age 43 after a four-year battle with colon cancer, according to an announcement posted on Friday on his Twitter and Facebook accounts.
Boseman, a native of South Carolina, passed away at his home, with his wife and family at his side, the statement said, without specifying when he died. He resided in Los Angeles.
In his screen career, Boseman played a number of real-life characters famed for breaking America’s racial barriers, including soul singer James Brown in Get on Up, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall in Marshall and baseball pioneer Jackie Robinson in 42”
His most memorable role was his 2018 performance as T’Challa, king of the fictional African kingdom of Wakanda and the crime fighter known as Black Panther, in the first major studio superhero movie featuring a predominantly African-American cast.
It went on to become one of the highest-grossing films of the year and was nominated for six Oscars, including `Best Picture’. It won three Academy Awards – in the `Best Original Score’, `Best Costume Design’ and `Best Production Design’ categories.