Before he was King T'Challa of Wakanda, Chadwick Boseman was Jackie Robinson in "42" and the king of soul James Brown in "Get on Up." Chadwick, who made his career playing legendary Black figures like Thurgood Marshall and Japanese samurai Yasuke, died after a four-year battle with cancer.
See his life in photos.
36 photos
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Bobby Bank/WireImage
Chadwick Boseman films on location for “42” on July 18, 2012, in Brooklyn, New York. Boseman portrayed Jackie Robinson’s career playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
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Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Rachel Robinson, widow of Jackie Robinson, hug actor Chadwick Boseman at the after party for the premiere of Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ “42” at the Chinese Theatre on April 9, 2013 in Los Angeles, California.
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John Ricard/Getty Images
Harrison Ford and Chad Boseman visit BET’s 106 & Park at BET Studios on April 8, 2013, in New York City.
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Jim Spellman/WireImage
Laurence Fishburne and Chadwick Boseman arrive at the “Man Of Steel” World Premiere at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center on June 10, 2013, in New York City. (Photo by Jim Spellman/WireImage)
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Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for BET
Chadwick Boseman attends the second day of the Radio Broadcast Center during the BET Awards ’14 on June 28, 2014 in Los Angeles, California.
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Jim McIssac/Getty Images
Chadwick Boseman and film director Spike Lee greet each other at the NBA game between the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden on April 14, 2013, in New York City.
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Alex Wong/Getty Images
First lady Michelle Obama speaks as actors Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford and Rachel Robinson, widow of the late baseball player Jackie Robinson, listen during a State Dining Room event April 2, 2013, at the White House in Washington, D.C.
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Mark Sullivan/WireImage
Chadwick Boseman throws out the ceremonial first pitch before the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Colorado Rockies followed by a special screening of “42” at Dodger Stadium on July 13, 2013 in Los Angeles, California.
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Dave J Hogan/Getty Images
Mick Jagger and Chadwick Boseman speak prior to a special screening of “Get On Up” on Sept. 14, 2014, in London, England.
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Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Actor Chadwick Boseman arrives at the premiere of Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ “42” at the Chinese Theatre on April 9, 2013, in Los Angeles, California.
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Taylor Hill/FilmMagic
Chadwick Boseman gives a fist bump at “Late Show with David Letterman” at Ed Sullivan Theater on August 20, 2014, in New York City.
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Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Chris Pratt accepts the Hollywood Blockbuster Award for ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ from Chadwick Boseman onstage during the 18th Annual Hollywood Film Awards at The Palladium on Nov. 14, 2014, in Hollywood, California.
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Mireya Acierto/Getty Images
Chadwick Boseman and NY Giants’ Odell Beckham attend the Public School runway show during MADE Fashion Week Fall 2015 at Studio 330 on Feb. 15, 2015 in New York City.
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Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images
Chadwick Boseman shoots against Anthony Anderson during the Sprint NBA All-Star Celebrity Game as part of 2015 All-Star Weekend at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 13, 2015, in New York, New York.
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Kevin Winter/Getty Images for NAACP Image Awards
Nicole Beharie and Chadwick Boseman speak onstage during the 45th NAACP Image Awards on Feb. 22, 2014, in Pasadena, California.
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Dia Dipasupil/FilmMagic
Chadwick Boseman arrives at the “Get On Up” premiere at The Apollo Theater on July 21, 2014, in New York City.
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Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Chadwick Boseman and Chris Evans speak onstage during the 88th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre on Feb. 28, 2016 ,in Hollywood, California.
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Margaret Norton/NBC
Actor Chadwick Boseman interviews with host Jay Leno on April 26, 2013.
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Michael Buckner/Getty Images for Audi
Chadwick Boseman attends Audi Arrivals at The World Premiere Of “Avengers: Age Of Ultron” at Dolby Theatre on April 13, 2015 in Hollywood, California.
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Kevin Mazur/VF14/WireImage
Chadwick Boseman and Lupita Nyong’o attend the 2014 Vanity Fair Oscar Party Hosted By Graydon Carter on March 2, 2014, in West Hollywood, California.
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Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney
Robert Downey Jr., Chadwick Boseman and Chris Evans onstage during Marvel Studios fan event at The El Capitan Theatre on Oct. 28, 2014, in Los Angeles, California.
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Lloyd Bishop/NBC
Chadwick Boseman speaks with host Seth Meyers backstage on May 2, 2016.
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Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney
John Boyega and Chadwick Boseman at the after party for the World Premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens on Hollywood Blvd on Dec. 14, 2015, in Hollywood, California.
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Bauer-Griffin/GC Images
Chadwick Boseman is seen at ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ on June 21, 2017 in Los Angeles, California.
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Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images
Comic Book legend Stan Lee poses with actor Chadwick Boseman on the purple carpet for the premiere of Disney and Marvel’s “Black Panther” held at the Dolby Theatre on Jan. 29, 2018, in Hollywood, California.
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Adela Loconte/WireImage
Chadwick Boseman attends the AOL Speaker Series to discuss “Captain America: Civil War” at AOL Studios In New York on May 4, 2016, in New York City.
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Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for FIJI Water
Sebastian Stan and Chadwick Boseman attend the Cinema Society with Audi and FIJI Water host a screening of Marvel’s “Captain America: Civil War” on May 4, 2016, in New York City.
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Han Myung-Gu/Getty Images for Disney
Director Ryan Coogler, Actor Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong’s and Michael B. Jordan arrive at the press conference for the Seoul premiere of ‘Black Panther’ on Feb. 5, 2018, in Seoul, South Korea.
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Cheriss May/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Moderator Roland Martin, host of TV One’s n“News One Now,” lead actor Chadwick Boseman and Director Reginald Hudlin, participate in a Q&A after the advance screening of the movie “Marshall,” a biography of a young Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court Justice.
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Ray Tamarra/Getty Images
Moderator Tamron Hall, actors Josh Gad, Kate Hudson, and Chadwick Boseman speak at the “Marshall” Q&A at AMC Empire 25 theater on Sept. 23, 2017, in New York City. (Photo by Ray Tamarra/Getty Images)
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Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney
Sterling K. Brown, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, Martin Freeman, Angela Bassett, Daniel Kaluuya, Lupita Nyong’o, Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Danai Gurira, Andy Serkis, and Forest Whitaker; writer/director Ryan Coogler; Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige; producers Louis D’Esposito and Victoria Alonso, and executive producer Nate Moore at the Los Angeles World Premiere of Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther” at Dolby Theatre on Jan. 29, 2018 in Hollywood, California.
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Jeff Gross/Getty Images
Terry Crews, Chadwick Boseman, Jennifer Garner, Kevin Costner and Denis Leary attend a press conference for the film “Draft Day” on Jan. 31, 2014 in New York City.
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Shahar Azran/WireImage
Author Ta-Nehisi Coates makes the “Wakanda Forever” sign with Black Panther stars Chadwick Boseman and Lupita Nyong’o at The Apollo Theater on Feb. 27, 2018, in New York City. (Photo by Shahar Azran/WireImage)
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Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
Actor Daniel Kaluuya and writer/director Jordan Peele accept Best Feature for ‘Get Out’ from actor Chadwick Boseman onstage during the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards on March 3, 2018 in Santa Monica, California.
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Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Octavia Spencer, Brian Grazer, Mick Jagger, Tate Taylor, NY Program Director for The Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences Patrick Harrison, actor Chadwick Boseman, Victoria Pearman, Nelsan Ellis, and Dan Aykroyd arrive at a special screening of ‘Get On Up’ hosted by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences at The Academy Theatre at Lighthouse International on July 17, 2014, in New York City.
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Presley Ann/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
Chadwick Boseman attends the 2018 Vanity Fair Oscar Party at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 4, 2018, in Beverly Hills, California.
