0
0
The life of an amazing actor cut short but one of inspiration. Today’s Turtle Star is the one and only Chadwick Boseman. My King. Boseman was an American actor with a career that spanned two decades. During his career, he won two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award, along with an Academy Award nomination. Known for playing historical figures, Boseman became the king of the Marvel Universe for his performance in the superhero juggernaut film, Black Panther. He might be gone from this earth, but his legacy is strongly intact as he showed even with cancer to keep fighting and working to the very end. Thank you, King Boseman, for your work and we will miss you.
T’Challa/Black Panther – Black Panther/MCU (2016-2019)
Wakanda Forever!!! Black Panther was a MASSIVE hit. Easily a top 5 superhero film of all time. The film went on to gross $1.3 billion worldwide while being nominated for seven awards at the 91st Academy Awards, winning three and even being nominated for Best Picture. Boseman was excellent as T’Challa. A man that comes face to face with going from prince to king. He was a man who didn’t want to be a hero but more of a person who protected his kingdom and people. Boseman also has such coolness about him that you wanted to be like him. He had the walk down, and you would be proud to say he is my king.
Levee Green-Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020)
Chadwick Boseman’s last film. Boseman should’ve won the Academy Award. Chadwick Boseman was SPECIAL, AMAZING, and TRULY a joy to watch in his final film. He laid it all out on the screen. He gave an outstanding and beautiful performance as the overconfident and ambitious Levee Green. Boseman was robbed and should’ve won the Academy Award, but his performance should be appreciated and watched. The way he showed Levee’s charming, angry, and depressed sides in one film takes mastery, and he did it to perfection and was an equal force to Davis’s character. It was an honor to watch you perform.
James Brown- Get On Up (2014)
James Brown was a living legend on the stage and in music. Brown was the man who called himself many honorific nicknames such as “the Hardest-Working Man in Show Business,” “Godfather of Soul,” “Mr. Dynamite,” and “Soul Brother No. 1”. Boseman embodied the legendary singer, and at most times, it was looking at a mirror image of the singer. I don’t know if Boseman did any of the moves, but damn, did he sound like Brown. I must applaud Boseman’s performance because it was that good and that entertaining. I love how he broke the fourth wall to show how Brown felt about his situation.
Thurgood Marshall- Marshall (2017)
Thurgood Marshall was the Supreme Court’s first African American justice. Before serving on the highest court in the land, he was a civil rights lawyer leading the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. Boseman has shown throughout his short life that he can play any character with such force and appeal. He showed Marshall as a man who was up for any challenge and fought for the justice of the weak.
Norman Earl “Stormin’ Norm” Holloway- Da 5 Bloods (2020)
Da 5 Bloods, a war drama film directed, produced, and co-written by the great and legendary Spike Lee. The film follows a group of four Vietnam War veterans who return to the country to retrieve their fallen squad leader and the treasure that they buried. Boseman plays “Stormin’ Norm”, the squad leader who fell in battle. Boseman role was short but impactful. He preached Black Excellence and what it means to be black in America.
Jackie Robinson- 42 (2013)
Jackie Robinson was the first black athlete to play in Major League Baseball. On April 15th, MLB celebrates his contributions to the game. Boseman had the honor of playing the legendary baseball star in his biopic. Boseman showed the determination, struggle and passion Robison endured during his first season. Boseman did a wonderful job showing Robinson keeping all his emotions buried deep inside of him while dealing with racism. One of Boseman’s earlier film roles and he nailed it out of the park.
Vontae Mack- Draft Day (2014)
After his performance in 42, Boseman follows that up starring as Vontae Mack, the star linebacker from The Ohio State University in Draft Day. In this film, the Cleveland Browns are drafting and deciding on which player to pick. The film was more about internal politics on NFL Draft Day. Boseman played Mack as an over-confident person who knows what he can do on the field and have the heart off the field. Boseman made sure to leave an impression.
Andre Davis- 21 Bridges (2019)
In 21 Bridges, Boseman plays Andre Davis, a NYPD Detective who shuts down the 21 river crossings of Manhattan to find two suspected cop killers. 21 Bridges is a different film from what Boseman usually performs but shows the versatility of the actor. As Davis, Boseman shows him as a disgruntle cop who has the street smarts, tough and determined to solve the case. Boseman was great on all fronts and even behind the scenes. Sienna Miller stated that Boseman donated parts of his salary to make sure she was fairly compensated.
Himself- Saturday Night Live (2018)
Boseman was hilarious as his turn as guest host of Saturday Night Live. Coming off the heels of Black Panther, Boseman got to show his comedic chops for the audience. The best sketch was Black Jeopardy. That one was hilarious and memorable. Several of the sketches were around Black Panther but it was nice to see this amazing actor do his thing on for the live crowd.
Marvel Tribute
This is a little different from Boseman’s roles. This one is a tribute Marvel Entertainment made in honor of their fallen king. This is a beautiful tribute that shows how great and an amazing person Boseman was to everyone and how he gave his all for every role. We miss you, my king.
