Chadwick Boseman Picks up Posthumous BET Award

Chadwick Boseman received a posthumus award for best actor during the BET Awards Sunday night. The actor, who died last August after being diagnosed with colon cancer four years ago, was named best actor for his role as troubled trumpet player Levee in Netflix's in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.

The Taraji P. Henson-hosted show was held at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles with the theme "Year of the Black Woman." The best actor award was announced by Renée Zellweger, according to Entertainment Tonight. To take home the award, Boseman beat out five other nominees – Aldis Hodge, Damson Idris, Daniel Kaluuya, Eddie Murphy, and Lakeith Stanfield. The Black Panther actor was also honored in the BET Awards' emotional "In Memoriam" segment, which, along with Boseman, also paid tribute to rapper DMX, who died in April, among several others.

The 2021 BET Award marked just the latest accolade for the late actor, who posthumously received the Critics Choice Award for best actor in March and also a 2021 Golden Globes in late February. All of the awards have been for his role in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Following his the Critics Choice Award win, Boseman's wife, Taylor Simone Ledward, delivered an emotional acceptance speech, stating, "for those of us who know Chad intimately, personally, professionally, those he taught, those he gave a word of advice, those who taught him - it is so hard to find a celebratory feeling in these moments as proud as we are of him." She said, "his work deserves this. His work in this film deserves this - he deserves this."

Boseman passed away on Friday, Aug. 28 following a four-year-long, undisclosed battle with colon cancer. He was 43. In a statement announcing his passing, his family called the actor a "true fighter" who "persevered through it all, and brought you many of the films you have come to love so much." They revealed, "from Marshall to Da 5 Bloods, August Wilson's Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and several more - all were filmed during and between countless surgeries and chemotherapy," adding that "it was the honor of his career to bring King T'Challa to life in Black Panther."

In the wake of his passing, numerous tributes have been made to the actor, the most recent being from Boseman's alma mater Howard University. In late May, the school announced it would honor Boseman by naming their newly re-established college of fine arts the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts. Boseman's wife said "the re-establishment of the College of Fine Arts brings this part of his story full-circle and ensures that his legacy will continue to inspire young storytellers for years to come."