Chadwick Boseman’s untimely death in 2020 was a complete heartbreaking shock to all, especially Black Panther director Ryan Coogler who reveals he almost quit filmmaking.
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While speaking with Entertainment Weekly, the co-writer/director revealed Boseman’s death made him rethink his future in filmmaking.
“I was at a point when I was like, ‘I’m walking away from this business. I didn’t know if I could make another movie period, [let alone] another Black Panther movie, because it hurt a lot. I was like, ‘Man, how could I open myself up to feeling like this again?’”
Coogler continued that after “poring over a lot of our conversations that we had, towards what I realized was the end of his life” he decided it made “more sense to keep going.”
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Thankfully, Coogler didn’t quit and is readying the follow-up Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
“It’s my job as a filmmaker to do things that I have personal integrity with,” Coogler said. “If I don’t believe in what I’m doing, I’m going to have a hard time getting other people to do their best work. For them to do their best work, they have to believe in it. At the end of the day, the choices we make have to feel truthful to me. When filmmakers make things that don’t feel truthful to them, you can feel it. And I will argue that those projects don’t have a shot at working.”
Black Panther is embedded in the legacy of Chadwick Boseman and we’re excited to see its sequel which will premiere in theaters on November 11.