Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman has been posthumously honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame during an emotional ceremony in Los Angeles.
Filmmaker Ryan Coogler, who directed Boseman in the 2018 hit, was joined by actress Viola Davis and Boseman's widow, Simone Ledward-Boseman, in paying tribute to Boseman in the heart of Tinseltown.
"Today was a beautiful day," Ms Ledward-Boseman said.
"Everyone was just so full of love and joy. And we're all so proud of this person that we knew, that we shared."
Coogler remembered Boseman as an "incredibly generous" person.
"Even when he knew his days were limited, and his moments were numbered, he still gave to the art form. He still threw himself into the fire," he said.
Boseman began his career in theatre and television before making the leap to film.
His most famous character, T'Challa — aka Black Panther — was introduced in 2016's Captain America: Civil War.
Two years later, he reprised the role in the hugely successful standalone film Black Panther, becoming the first black actor to lead a film in the sprawling Marvel franchise.
Boseman died in 2020 at the age of 43 from colon cancer, which had been diagnosed four years earlier.
He filmed his scenes in Black Panther while battling the disease, unbeknown to his director and co-stars.
However, his poor health did not keep him from fully committing to his craft, Coogler said.
"Even though he was going through what he was going through, he would do his own stunts, he would be there for off-camera dialogue readings. It was incredible," he said.
Davis, with whom Boseman shared the screen in 2020's Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, which would be his final outing, said Boseman's work "reminded us that we are less alone".
"That was Chadwick, more than just an actor who you can observe on screen doing wonderful work," she said.
Disney chief executive Bob Iger, Black Panther actors Michael B Jordan and Letitia Wright, and Boseman's brothers, Kevin and Derrick, also attended the ceremony.
Marvel is yet to officially announce a third Black Panther movie, after continuing the franchise with 2022's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but Coogler has all but confirmed it is in production.
AFP/ABC
