‘Black Panther’ star pays for over 300 SC kids to see movie

Anderson, SC, native Chadwick Boseman is the star of the hottest movie in America, “Black Panther.” The movie, the latest in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, tells the story of T’Challa, a prince from the fictional African country of Wakanda who returns home to take his rightful place as king after the death of his father. A superhero in real life, Boseman picked up the tab for 312 underpriviledged kids in Anderson to see the movie at the local AmStar 14 theater on Saturday.

The theater manager said that a total of 460 of Boseman’s family and friends attended the movie on opening night.

Boseman’s act of kindness is part of the #BlackPantherChallenge, a movement started by Frederick Josephs, a marketer and philanthropist in New York City.

#BlackPantherChallenge began as a GoFundMe crowd fund by Josephs to raise money to purchase tickets to the movie for disadvantaged youth in New York’s Harlem neighborhood. It soon raised tens of thousands of dollars, got the attention of TV talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, and spawned #BlackPantherChallenges nationwide. Josephs thinks that it is important for children of color to see a movie like “Black Panther” that features an African hero lead and strong female supporting cast.

“Black Panther” opened nationwide to box office records, bringing in an estimated $201.8 million for its three-day North American debut.

This story was originally published February 20, 2018 at 8:02 AM with the headline "‘Black Panther’ star pays for over 300 SC kids to see movie."