Chadwick Boseman 'Brought Joy, Inspiration' To Children With Cancer Amid Own Battle

Before Chadwick Boseman passed away due to colon cancer, the “Black Panther” star visited children battling the disease amid his own health struggles.

Boseman chose not to publicize his four-year battle against colon cancer, but he made it a point to reach out to and keep in touch with terminally ill children. Following his passing, St. Jude’s Hospital shared on social media how Boseman brought the kids joy during his 2018 visit.

“Two years ago, Chadwick visited the St. Jude campus and brought with him not only toys for our patients but also joy, courage and inspiration. He was an incredible role model for our patients and children from all around the world,” a representative for the hospital wrote, adding, “Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.”

A Sept. 13, 2018 post of St. Jude’s Hospital showed Boseman talking to the kids and gamely making his signature Wakanda pose.

“It’s not every day that St. Jude gets a visit from an Avenger! Thank you @ChadwickBoseman for stopping by to bring joy to our patients and learn more about our lifesaving mission,” the caption read.

In the same year, Boseman got emotional during an interview with SiriusXM as he recounted his friendship with two boys who later died of cancer. In the resurfaced clip, the actor can be seen holding back his tears in the beginning as he shared how enthusiastic the kids were to see “Black Panther.”

Knowing that the kids, named Ian and Taylor, were terminally ill, Boseman said he was communicating with them throughout the filming of “Black Panther.”

“What they said to me, and their parents said that they were trying to hold on 'til this movie comes,” Boseman said as he tried his best to keep his composure. “And to a certain degree, you hear them say that, and you're like, 'I gotta get up and go to the gym, or I gotta go to work. I gotta learn these lines, I gotta work on this accent seeing how devoted all of my cast mates are and knowing that that will mean so much to them.’”

“You're like, 'This can't mean that much to them. But seeing how the world has taken us on, seeing how the movement is, how it's taken on a life of its own, I realized they anticipated something great...It put me back in the mind of being a kid, just to experience those two little boys; anticipation of this movie. And when I found out that they,” he shared before pausing as he choked up.

Boseman then broke down in tears, as his co-stars Lupita Nyong'o and Danai Gurira placed their hands on him. He continued, “Yeah, it means a lot.”