Many are still processing the loss of beloved actor Chadwick Boseman, who died Aug. 28, at 43 years old. Fans and entertainment industry colleagues were shocked to find out that he’d been diagnosed with cancer four years earlier: Boseman had kept his illness private.
On Tuesday, Lupita Nyong’o, his Black Panther co-star, shared that she still grapples with what feels like “a punch to the gut every morning.” Across her socials, she offered a candid and enlightening tribute that showed readers a more intimate look at who Boseman was, beyond (although very much in sync with) his best-known role.
He was one of those magical, infrequently encountered but life-altering beings who, as Nyong’o describes, “possess an immortal energy that [makes it] seem like they have existed before.”
Boseman was unique. He achieved the feat of being “fully present and also somehow fully aware of things in the distant future,” Nyong’o wrote. This meant he “never seemed rushed.”
“When I was around Chadwick, I wanted to be better, less petty, more purposeful,” she wrote. “He was fueled by love, not fear.” Nyong’o also noted how intentional Boseman was in his love for Black people and humanity.
His legacy will “reverberate for generations,” Nyong’o assured. Today, she hopes that legacy already reminds others that they should not waste their time.
Sending her deepest condolences to his family and friends, she included a hashtag based on a phrase by Simone, Boseman’s wife: #TakeYourTimeButDontWasteYourTime.