We can’t remember an actor taken from us at such a young age who has touched so many as did Chadwick Boseman, who died at age 43. Tonight, Marvel Studios, ABC Entertainment and ABC News will present a special Sunday evening to remember him. Marvel Studios’ blockbuster hit film Black Panther will debut on ABC tonight — commercial free — from 8 PM, followed by a an ABC News special. Chadwick Boseman – A Tribute for a King, will air from 10:20-11:00 p.m. this evening, a special exec produced by Steven Baker.
The Oscar-winning Ryan Coogler-directed Black Panther stars the late Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Oscar winners Lupita Nyong’o and Forest Whitaker, Danai Gurira, Oscar nominees Daniel Kaluuya and Angela Bassett, and Martin Freeman, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, Sterling K. Brown and Andy Serkis. The film grossed $1.3 billion to become far and away the largest global gross for a film made by a Black director, and populated by a Black cast. The ABC News special will celebrate Boseman’s storied life, legacy and career, and the cultural imprint he made on- and off-screen. It will feature tributes that have poured in from celebrities, political figures and fans across the world, special words from those who starred alongside him and knew Boseman best, and shine a light on the medical condition he privately battled.
Boseman plays T’Challa who, after the death of his father, the King of Wakanda, returns home to the isolated, technologically advanced African nation to succeed to the throne and take his rightful place as king. But when a powerful old enemy reappears, T’Challa’s mettle as king – and Black Panther – is tested when he is drawn into a formidable conflict that puts the fate of Wakanda and the entire world at risk. Faced with treachery and danger, the young king must rally his allies and release the full power of Black Panther to defeat his foes and secure the safety of his people and their way of life.
The film received seven nominations at the 91st Academy Awards including Best Picture, with wins for Best Costume Design, Best Original Score and Best Production Design. The film became the first superhero film to receive a Best Picture nomination and the first MCU film to win an Academy Award. It also received three nominations at the 76th Golden Globe® Awards, two wins at the 25th Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three wins at the 24th Critics’ Choice Awards from 12 nominations, among others. Coogler co-wrote the screenplay with Joe Robert Cole. Kevin Feige and David J. Grant were producers; and Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jeffrey Chernov, Nate Moore and Stan Lee served as executive producers. The film was produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and has been airing on Disney+.