Skip To ContentHomepageQuizzesTV & MoviesShoppingVideosNewsTastySign InSearch BuzzFeedSearch BuzzFeedlol Badge Feedwin Badge Feedtrending Badge Feed

Pop Culture

TV & MoviesCelebrityBest of the InternetAnimalsMusicRewindBooksLGBTQ

Quizzes

LatestTrendingFoodLoveTriviaQuiz Party

Shopping

LatestHomeFashionTechBeauty & Personal CarePetsSports & FitnessBuzzFeed Merch

Video

LatestCocoa ButterNEW!Mom In ProgressWorth ItUnsolved True CrimeUnsolved SupernaturalMultiplayerPero LikeCocoa Butter

Lifestyle

As/Is: StyleBringMe: TravelGoodful: WellnessNifty: DIYParentsFoodWeddingsSex And LoveNEW!

Community

What is Community?Join Community!Featured PostsLeaderboard

From Our Partners

Countdown to HalloweenOpening Doors to the OutdoorsThis is Latine CultureLGBTQ+ Joy For AllHydrow The CurrentSan Diego, Happiness is CallingScience Will WinIt's Your Journey

About

About UsAdvertiseInvestor RelationsJobsNewslettersEditionUSUKAustraliaBrasilCanadaDeutschlandIndiaJapanLatamCalifornia residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data.Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2022 BuzzFeed, Inc PressRSSPrivacyConsent PreferencesUser TermsAccessibility StatementAd ChoicesHelpContactSitemapBuzzFeed NewsReporting on what you care about. We hold major institutions accountable and expose wrongdoing.BuzzFeed TastySearch, watch, and cook every single Tasty recipe and video ever - all in one place!BuzzFeed GoodfulSelf care and ideas to help you live a healthier, happier life.BuzzFeed Bring MeObsessed with travel? Discover unique things to do, places to eat, and sights to see in the best destinations around the world with Bring Me!BuzzFeed As IsSomething for everyone interested in hair, makeup, style, and body positivity.Celebrity·Posted 12 minutes ago

"Black Panther" Director Ryan Coogler Almost Quit Making Movies After Chadwick Boseman's Death

"I didn't know if I could make another movie period, [let alone] another Black Panther movie, because it hurt a lot."

by Alex Gurley

BuzzFeed Contributor

FacebookPinterestTwitterMailLink

Black Panther director Ryan Coogler was ready to walk away from Hollywood following Chadwick Boseman's death.

Tim P. Whitby / Tim P. Whitby / Getty Images

After Chadwick lost his battle with colon cancer in 2020, Ryan says it hurt too much to think about making movies.

Paul Bruinooge / Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

"I was at a point when I was like, 'I'm walking away from this business,'" Ryan said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

Matt Kennedy /© Marvel / © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection

He continued, "I didn't know if I could make another movie period, [let alone] another Black Panther movie, because it hurt a lot. I was like, 'Man, how could I open myself up to feeling like this again?'"

Vivien Killilea / Getty Images

But as he reflected on his final conversations with Chadwick, Ryan knew he had to move forward.

Matt Kennedy /© Marvel / © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection

"I was poring over a lot of our conversations that we had, towards what I realized was the end of his life. I decided that it made more sense to keep going," Ryan shared.

Kevin Winter / Getty Images

Ryan went on to create Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which allowed him to grieve the loss of Chadwick while carrying on his legacy by expanding it with an entirely new story.

View this video on YouTube

Marvel / Via youtube.com

"It's my job as a filmmaker to do things that I have personal integrity with. If I don't believe in what I'm doing, I'm going to have a hard time getting other people to do their best work," he said.

Mike Marsland / WireImage / Getty Images

Ryan continued, "At the end of the day, the choices we make have to feel truthful to me. When filmmakers make things that don't feel truthful to them, you can feel it. And I will argue that those projects don't have a shot at working."

Albert L. Ortega / Getty Images

And while filming the movie was emotional at times, he poured that into the movie's themes of loss and maturation.

Kevin Winter / Getty Images

"There's that idea of grief and intense emotion feeling like it comes in waves," he said. "Sometimes a wave can take you away where you lose control of it. You think you're in control, but the water can always remind you that you're not."

You can read all that Ryan had to say here.

Share This Article

FacebookPinterestTwitterMailLink

BuzzFeed Daily

Keep up with the latest daily buzz with the BuzzFeed Daily newsletter!

Newsletter signup formEmail AddressSign upThis site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.