Five years after his passing, Chadwick Boseman’s presence is still felt strongly in Hollywood, this time from beyond. The late Black Panther star will be honoured with a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 20, 2025, cementing his name among the legends he once stood beside on-screen.

It’s a moment that feels both overdue and perfectly timed. Since his death in 2020 to colo cancer, the world has continued to celebrate Boseman not only for his filmography but for the dignity, discipline, and depth he brought to every role, from 42 to Get On Up to Marshall. His career was a masterclass in purpose. He gave world class acting and embodied so much greatness.

At the ceremony, director Ryan Coogler, who brought Boseman’s T’Challa to life in Black Panther, and Viola Davis, his co-star in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, will speak in his honour. His wife, Simone Ledward Boseman, will accept the star on his behalf, a bittersweet moment for fans who still remember the quiet grace with which she’s carried his legacy.

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce praised Boseman’s “powerful performances and enduring impact both on and off screen,” noting that his legacy “continues to inspire generations” around the world. And truly, few actors have left a mark quite like his.

In a career that spanned less than two decades, Boseman redefined what it meant to be a Black leading man in Hollywood. He played real-life heroes like Jackie Robinson, James Brown, Thurgood Marshall, and fictional ones who felt just as real, like T’Challa, King of Wakanda. Every performance carried the weight of representation and the pride of possibility.

Even now, his influence is everywhere. You can see it in the new wave of young Black actors who talk about him as a north star. You can feel it in the black stories Hollywood is telling, the ones with more depth, power, and cultural resonance.

A star on the Walk of Fame may be made of brass and terrazzo, but for Chadwick Boseman, it’s something more. It’s a reminder that purpose outlives presence and that legacy doesn’t fade when the spotlight dims. That a king’s reign doesn’t end when the screen goes dark.

‍