Chadwick Boseman's Widow Says He Was Cancer-Free Before It Returned
Chadwick Boseman’s Widow Says He Was Cancer-Free Before It Returned
Simone Ledward Boseman says that she’s still grieving but that it’s become more manageable in the years since her husband, Chadwick Boseman, died. The singer has done her best during the time that has passed to honor his memory, from overseeing the ceremony that placed his star on Hollywood Boulevard, to spreading awareness about early detection for colon cancer.
Simone appeared on the Today show to talk about what it was like during her brief marriage to Boseman and how he handled being in the spotlight after a shocking cancer diagnosis.
When Black Panther came out in 2018, Chadwick, 41, had already been diagnosed with the disease, which has doubled in adults younger than 55 in the last three decades. Simone says that it was one of the couple’s most special times, not just because of the film’s release, but because they’d received some good news.
“It was a beautiful year,” she told Craig Melvin, while becoming choked up. “It’s harder to talk about the good times than it is the bad.”
Chadwick, she told him, was in remission and happy to represent a global phenomenon. Black Panther was Marvel Comics’ first Black superhero. Directed by Ryan Coogler, the movie celebrated the richness of African culture, connecting it to the Black diaspora. It became a global phenomenon from the time the trailer dropped, encouraging a sense of pride among viewers of color worldwide.
Boseman, who’d already played Jackie Robinson and James Brown in the movies 42 and Get on Up, respectively, was becoming an icon as much for his pivotal role as Wakanda’s King T’Challa/Black Panther as for his integrity and graciousness.
“Panther came out in February, to see how deeply, deeply and globally impactful that film was, I just don’t have any words for it,” Simone said. “He was just so deserving of all the success.”
The Howard University graduate knew that he had cancer (sharp-eyed fans can see a lengthy scar running down the center of his chest on the 2018 Rolling Stone cover) but kept it private through to his death, when even Marvel Cinematic Universe president Kevin Feige was reportedly kept in the dark.
No one, except his inner circle, knew he was sick, and for a while, he and Simone enjoyed the Panther journey.
Simone continued, “It did feel like, you know, they didn’t know we were celebrating that he had a clear scan, but we were celebrating that too. It felt like we got another chance.”
But, she says in 2019, the cancer returned, devastating the couple who married in a private ceremony in 2020.
“We both felt sure he would make it through,” Simone said. “It would be a challenging moment, something that he would come out on the other side of and be fine.”
But sadly, when Chadwick’s cancer returned, it was more aggressive, and he died on August 28, 2020.
“A true fighter, Chadwick persevered through it all and brought you many of the films you have come to love so much,” a statement from his family read after his passing. “From Marshall to Da 5 Bloods, August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and several more, all were filmed during and between countless surgeries and chemotherapy.”
Simone, who released an album, The Mornings under the name sahn in 2023, is ensuring that Chadwick’s work is being preserved. His play Deep Azure is now onstage in London. She says that he kept his cancer battle private because he didn’t want to be treated any differently. And in keeping his legacy alive, she ensures that he’s remembered for his work, not his illness.
“What’s more important about Chad is the way that he lived,” she said. “The fact that he wouldn’t let cancer get in the way of what he was here to do, let that be the lesson.”
Chadwick Boseman’s Widow Says He Was Cancer-Free Before It Returned was originally published on cassiuslife.com
