“When I look back at my relationship with him, it taught me so much,” the “Black Panther” director reflected.

Ryan Coogler shares the life-changing advice he got from Chadwick Boseman: ‘Stop saying that’

"When I look back at my relationship with him, it taught me so much," the "Black Panther" director reflected.

By Ryan Coleman

Ryan Coleman

Ryan Coleman is a news writer for with previous work in MUBI Notebook, Slant, and the LA Review of Books.

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January 19, 2026 10:30 a.m. ET

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Ryan Coogler and Chadwick Boseman on the set of 'Black Panther'. Credit: Matt Kennedy/Marvel Studios

Chadwick Boseman's impact on his *Black Panther *director Ryan Coogler is everlasting.**

Coogler outlined just how influential Boseman's advice and example to him have been, nearly six years since his death at the age of 43 from colon cancer, during a recent appearance on Amy Poehler's *Good Hang* podcast.

"When I look back at my relationship with him, it taught me so much. But the biggest thing is to not take things for granted," Coogler shared. "Even all of this, Amy — the success of [Coogler's new film, *Sinners*], being invited to the podcast with you, doing awards press with my cast. Before losing him, I would not be present in those moments. I would be overwhelmed or considering it to be work, or dealing with imposter syndrome."

Coogler explained that his self-doubting, preoccupied instincts have changed "since losing him — because he would be the one to like snap me out of that."

Ryan Coogler and Chadwick Boseman at the London premiere of 'Black Panther' in 2018.

Mike Marsland/WireImage

Coogler became an indie sensation in 2013 with the release of his searing debut, *Fruitvale Station*, which told the true story of a young Black man named Oscar Grant, who police shot to death at an Oakland transit station. The boxing drama *Creed *built on that success, leading Coogler to be tapped by Marvel for one of the most consequential directing gigs of the past decade — the first feature-length treatment of Black Panther lore from Marvel comics.

Boseman was cast to play the noble superhero before Coogler boarded the project, but their collaboration resulted in one of the most popular and commercially successful films in modern film history. To hear Coogler tell it, he only survived production on *Black Panther *due to Boseman's steadfast support.

"When I would be stressed on *Panther*, I would say, 'Man, I gotta hurry up and do this or I'm gonna get fired.' And he would say, 'Hey, man, stop saying that,'" Coogler recalled. "He actually pulled me to the side and was like, 'Yo, stop saying that, man.' I'm like, 'No, I truly believe that. He was like, 'Yo, I'm not going to let anything happen to you... I'm not letting nobody fire you, bro, [so] please stop saying that. Relax, man. Do your work, enjoy it.'"

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According to Coogler, "that very act of being present" helped him stabilize under pressure and finish the film.

"I think about that all the time. Even walking in here with you," Coogler told Poehler. "Just being present — I literally learned that from him."

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After Boseman's death, Coogler remembered the actor in an emotional tribute that read in part, "I had no idea if the film would work. I wasn’t sure I knew what I was doing. But I look back and realize that Chad knew something we all didn’t. He was playing the long game. All while putting in the work. And work he did."****

You can watch the rest of Coogler's appearance on *Good Hang *above.

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Source: “EW Movie”