Chadwick Boseman On How Black Panther Changed Him

Black Panther broke so much ground for the comic book genre. Not only was the film Marvel's first standalone movie for Chadwick Boseman's T'Challa, but it was also the studio's very first all-black comic book movie. Black Panther's success proved to Hollywood that audiences looked for diversity and representation in films. Catapulting him to success, Boseman admits that Black Panther had a profound effect on him.

Sitting with Hollywood Reporter at a "Close-Up" roundtable, Boseman opened up about his experience becoming Marvel's King of Wakanda and the effect that Black Panther had on him. According to the actor, the film made him more idealistic searching for what his real culture actually is.

"For me it was the fact that as a person of African descent, this searching for what my real culture is, living that and believing that space and showing that on screen and just being able to give that to an audience, to say that 'I know so much about my past, I know so much about my history,'" Boseman explained during his interview with the publication. "Which, as an African-American, I've searched for that my entire life. But to be a person that didn't have to search for it."

Black Panther had such a phenomenal effect on the comic book industry, helping prove that comic book fans didn't just want cool films – they wanted films that had significant socio-political commentary. Now, the film is on the Awards track. Together with Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel's Black Panther is currently one of Disney's contenders for the 2019 Academy Awards, and a lot of fans are rooting for the film.

Catch Boseman's T'challa when Avengers 4 premieres on May 3, 2019.

Read: Black Panther Gets Best Drama Nominations At This Year's Golden Globes