"Black Panther" star dies at 72
The "Black Panther" film series has already lost one of its big stars in Chadwick Boseman. Now, it has to mourn another loss: Connie Chiume, who appeared as one of the tribal elders in both parts, has died at the age of 72.
In 2020, Wakanda had to say goodbye to its king, Chadwick Boseman. The actor who played the title character in the first "Black Panther" film had succumbed to cancer at the age of 43. Now, another sad news has emerged: Connie Chiume, who played the representative of Zawavari in the fictional land, has passed away. The South African actress was 72 years old.
The sad news was announced by Chiume's family on their official Instagram account. In a short statement, they said, "The Chiume family regrets to announce the passing of internationally acclaimed and award-winning actress Connie Chiume." She passed away on August 6 at the Garden City Hospital in Johannesburg. The circumstances of her death are not mentioned in the post, but the family has promised to provide further details at an appropriate time.
Chiume's biggest successes came with her role in the two "Black Panther" films. In the 2018 debut of the film series, she played one of the tribal elders. Four years later, in "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever", she reprised her role as Zawavari and became the successor to Forest Whitaker's character Zuri as an important representative of the fictional Wakanda.
Acting calling found late
In an interview with the "Sunday Times" about two years ago, she spoke about her unusual casting for the Marvel blockbuster: "I went to an audition without knowing what I was auditioning for. I got a scene to do and I could see that the character was an African woman addressing the nation. I wore my African attire, I learned my lines. I gave it my best shot." That "Black Panther" would become a massive success at the box office was something she couldn't have imagined at the time.
Chiume found her acting calling late, having first worked as a teacher. In her mid-20s, she moved to Greece to pursue her acting career. After joining the cast of the musical "Sola Sola" there, she gradually became famous in her home country as well. From the late 1980s onwards, she appeared in numerous TV films and series there, including the drama series "Gomora". She also appeared in Beyoncé's musical "Black Is King".
The South African actress Connie Chiume, renowned for her role as one of the tribal elders in the "Black Panther" film series, passed away at the age of 72. Her contributions to the Hollywood industry were profound, as she reprised her role in the sequel "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever."
