ABC is honoring Chadwick Boseman tonight with an evening of programming dedicated to paying tribute to the Marvel star, who passed away this week at the age of 43. Boseman had been privately suffering from colon cancer for the past four years, and the tragic news of his death was announced via a statement from the actor’s family on Friday night.
The Disney-owned network has now revealed that it will honor the actor with a special presentation of Black Panther at 8/7c, which will then be followed by an ABC News special titled Chadwick Boseman – A Tribute for a King. The “special presentation” aspect of the screening of the Marvel film is that it will play without commercial breaks.
Tonight, ABC will celebrate the legacy of Chadwick Boseman with a special presentation of Marvel Studios’ Black Panther followed by the ABC News Special: Chadwick Boseman – A Tribute for a King. It all starts tonight at 8/7c on ABC. pic.twitter.com/1hQRox5FRC
— Marvel Entertainment (@Marvel) August 30, 2020
TBS also aired Black Panther on Saturday evening to mark Boseman’s passing, and will do so again tonight. If you can’t catch either of these screenings, though, Ryan Coolger’s movie – which earned a Best Picture nomination at the Academy Awards, a groundbreaking moment for superhero cinema – can also be streamed anytime on Disney Plus, along with Boseman’s other three films in the MCU. That’s Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Stars from across the Marvel universe have been paying their respects to their friend and colleague all weekend. Iron Man actor Robert Downey Jr. shared that he will “remember the good times, the laughter, and the way he changed the game,” while Captain America star Chris Evans called Boseman a “true original” and said that he’s “endlessly grateful” for their friendship. Hulk actor Mark Ruffalo and Captain Marvel actress Brie Larson also posted touching messages.
Chadwick Boseman‘s final film released before his death was Netflix’s Da 5 Bloods, but the actor shot two further movies – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and Yasuke – which will now be released posthumously.