Denzel Washington Admits He Cried After Seeing Chadwick Boseman’s Effect On The Cinema Industry

At the Toronto Film Festival on Thursday, Denzel Washington shared his feelings about Chadwick Boseman, the star of the movie Black Panter, who passed away after his fight with cancer at the age of 43. The actor’s sudden death deeply saddened everyone, especially Washington.

Denzel Washington said Boseman was a gentle soul and he lived a full life. He shared a memory he had about him. It was at a red carpet premiere for Disney’s Black Panther.

Here’s what he said:

“I went backstage and I saw Chad and I saw Ryan Coogler, and then I watched the movie and I remember shedding a tear, because I thought, man, these young guys are gone. Like they’d taken over.“

The bond between Washington and Boseman was strengthened when Washington helped him and paid for his British American Drama Academy summer program.

Not forgetting this help, he repaid his respect and told this during the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Washington in 2019.

Here’s what he said:

“Many of you already know the story that Mr. Washington, when asked by Phylicia Rashad to join her in assisting nine theater students from Howard University who had been accepted to a summer acting program at the British Academy of Dramatic Acting in Oxford. He gracefully and privately agreed to contribute. As fate would have it, I was one of the students that he paid for.”

He continued:

“Imagine receiving the letter that your tuition for that summer was paid for and that your benefactor was none other than the dopest actor on the planet. I have no doubt there are similar stories at Boys and Girls Clubs and theaters and churches across the country where I know you have also inspired and motivated others.”

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