Chadwick Boseman’s Wife Accepts Gotham Award In His Honor

Simone Ledward Boseman, Chadwick Boseman’s wife and widow, publicly spoke out for the first time since the actor’s death at the 30th annual IFP Gotham Awards on Jan. 11. 

Accepting her husband’s Gotham Awards ActornTribute honor, Simone delivered a moving acceptance speech, People reports. Boseman was also nominated for Best Actor.

During the acceptance speech, Simone said that her late husband was “the most honest person I’d ever met” and that “he actively searched for it, in himself, those around him and the moment. The truth can be a very easy thing for the self to avoid. But if one does not live in truth, then it’s impossible to live life.”

“So it became how he lived his life, day in and day out,” she noted. “Imperfect but determined. He was blessed to live many lives within his concentrated one. He developed his understanding of what it meant to be the one, the none and the all. ‘A vessel to be poured into and out of,’ he’d said.”

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Simone said that her husband, “harnessed the power of letting go, and letting God’s love shine through. He realized that when one is able to recognize that when their strength does not come from themself, they rarely mess up. That’s what he was doing when he was acting. Modeling for us a path to true fulfillment.”

Trying to hold her tears back she added in closing, “Chad, thank you. I love you. I am so proud of you. Keep shining your light on us. Thank you.” 

One of Chadwick Boseman’s final roles can be seen in the Netflix film Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, opposite Viola Davis. 

The 43-year-old award-winning actor passed away on August 28, 2020 after a secret four-year battle with colon cancer.