Chadwick Boseman received universal praise for his lead performance in Black Panther. After that (and appearing in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame), the wheels began turning on Black Panther 2. Ryan Coogler is returning to write and direct, with the film set to show how T’Challa grows into his role as the king of Wakanda. But a recent video has fans worried that Boseman might be seriously unwell.
The actor posted a clip on Instagram about his partnership with Operation 42, an organization set up to help hospitals in African-American communities during the Coronavirus pandemic. His message was as follows:
“Celebrating #JackieRobinsonDay with the launch of Thomas Tull’s #Operation42, a donation of 4.2 million dollars in personal protective equipment (PPE) to hospitals that service the African American Communities who have been hit the hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic. Thank you, Jackie, for refusing to accept the world as it is, for showing us that we can make a difference.”
It’s a laudable message, but many of the comments expressed concern about what appears to be dramatic weight loss, with Boseman apparently having shed all of the muscle he built up for his MCU appearances. Some argue that this must simply be for a new role he’s playing, some say he’s just naturally skinny when he’s not preparing for an action part, and some think he’s at death’s door.
Here’s a selection of the responses:
Please tell me Chadwick Boseman lost weight for a movie because he does NOT look well at all.
— 🧁joi alexandra🧁 (@bruneaux_mahs) April 16, 2020
https://twitter.com/diegoknife/status/1250662223279616001?s=20
I think Chadwick Boseman is just naturally a skinnier guy and just gains weight for certain roles. Here’s a pic of him from 12/2019. Overall I don’t think he wants his Instagram flooded with comments telling him to eat some food 🥴 pic.twitter.com/maK7UpLiwt
— joanna’s struggle tweets (@dumbdotcomm) April 16, 2020
https://twitter.com/minpieceofpeace/status/1250718693077643265?s=20
Is Chadwick Boseman ill? His drastic weight loss is worrisome.
— Peace (@Oshoks_) April 16, 2020
Someone please check on Chadwick Boseman. The man has been getting slimmer and slimmer. Since being a judge at the Slam Dunk contest I’ve been concerned about homie…
— G, Who Remains (@SIR_George_718) April 16, 2020
https://twitter.com/katieliza92/status/1250601078795755526?s=20
I just feel like if Chadwick Boseman was losing weight for a movie role he would’ve said it.
— Qᴜᴇᴇɴ ᴏғ Aᴍᴇʀɪᴄᴀ (@galwithaboyname) April 16, 2020
https://twitter.com/glasgowman/status/1250666896497815552?s=20
I had a look at Boseman’s upcoming projects to see if there were any roles that might warrant this physical change and the only potential candidate I can see is Yasuke. This is a movie by Narcos co-creator Doug Miro, in which he’ll play the real-life African man who served under Oda Nobunaga, famed for being the only person of non-Asian origin to become a full samurai (sorry, Tom Cruise).
So, let’s not rush to assume that he’s ill. Still, it would be nice if we could get some confirmation that all’s well in the world of the Black Panther star.