Chadwick Boseman’s widow tearfully accepts the late actor’s NAACP Image Award

The late Chadwick Boseman proved his undying stardom and immense talent as he was honored at the 2021 NAACP Image Awards on Saturday. 

The Black Panther actor — who unexpectedly died at the age of 43 in August following a private four year battle with colon cancer — received an award for Outstanding Actor In a Motion Picture for his role in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. 

The movie was one of the last film’s of his career and his widow, Simone Ledward Boseman, tearfully accepted the award on his behalf with an emotional speech and call to action. 

In her virtual acceptance speech Simone brought tears to viewers eyes as she spoke about what he would say and who he would thank had he been here to accept it himself. 

‘As always, he would give all honor and glory to the most high God. He would thank his mom and dad, and he would give honor to the ancestors as we now honor him,’ she said. 

‘Thank you NAACP Image Awards for always giving him his flowers. He was an uncommon artist and an even more uncommon person. But the manner in which we lost him is not uncommon at all. Not in our community.’ 

She concluded her speech by urging viewers to get screened for colon cancer and be ‘proactive’ about health, so that no one would have to suffer the same loss as she.   

‘Black people in this country are 20 percent more likely to be diagnosed with colon cancer and 40 percent more likely to die from it. The age for routine screening has recently been lowered to 45 so if you are 45 years of age or older, please get screened. Don’t put it off any longer, please get screened,’ she pleaded. 

‘This disease is beatable if you catch it in its early stages so you don’t have any time to waste even if you have no family history and even if you think nothing is wrong. And if you are younger than 45, please be proactive about your health. Know the signs, know the science, listen to your body,’ she said, plugging the organization Stand Up To Cancer for a full list of symptoms.   

She signed off addressing viewers: ‘Please, you are so needed and you are so loved. Please take your health into your own hands. Thank you.’

The award show tweeted ‘Gone but NEVER forgotten. Thank you for everything you have done for us #RestInPower,’ and the BET Network congratulated him while saying ‘We can honor his legacy by visiting standuptocancer.org to gain awareness.’

A frontrunner at this year’s award season despite his tragic passing, he has walked away already with many posthumous awards including one for best actor at the Critics Choice Awards, an IFP Gotham tribute Award, and a Golden Globe for best actor for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. 

He also received his first-ever Oscar nomination for the Netflix film where he plays Levee Green — a self-assured trumpeter — starring opposite Viola Davis, and made history when he became the first actor to receive four SAG nods in a single year.  

Boseman’s death sent shockwaves through Hollywood last August, the announcement coming in the form of a social media post written on his behalf.  

‘It is with immeasurable grief that we confirm the passing of Chadwick Boseman. Chadwick was diagnosed with stage III colon cancer in 2016, and battled with it these last four years as it progressed to state IV. A true fighter he persevered through it all, and brought you many of the films you have come to love so much.’

The tweet added that he died in his home surrounded by his wife and family, and it still remains the most ‘liked’ post in the site’s history with 7.4M impressions.