Lupita Nyong'o admits heartache over Chadwick Boseman's death in moving tribute

Lupita Nyong'o admitted in a tribute shared on social media on Tuesday that she is still in disbelief over Chadwick Boseman's passing. The actor died from Stage 4 colon cancer in August.

The "Us" star penned a lengthy moving tribute to her dear friend on Instagram, where she talked about her heartache and her promise to honour his memory. She admitted that she is still trying to make sense of the actor's death as she still cannot bear to talk about him in the past tense.

"I write these words from a place of hopelessness, to honor a man who had great hope. I am struggling to think and speak about my friend, Chadwick Boseman, in the past tense. It doesn't make sense," Nyong'o began.

The 37-year-old award-winning actress called his passing a punch to her gut every morning. While she is aware that people eventually die, she also believes that there are those who "possess that immortal energy that seems like they have existed before, that are exactly where they are supposed to always be – here!" They are people who seem ageless and she considered Boseman one of them.

Nyong'o shared the fond memories she had of her "Black Panther" co-star. She said he "was a man who made the most of his time and somehow also managed to take his time." They may not have known each other long but he had a profound effect on her.

"When we came together to make 'Black Panther,' I remember being struck by his quiet, powerful presence. He had no airs about him, but there was a higher frequency that he seems to operate from," she remembered. Boseman made you feel that he "was fully present and also somehow fully aware of things in the distant future."

She shared that Boseman made her want "to be better, less petty, more purposeful." She described him as someone "fuelled by love, not fear" who "moved quietly, deliberately and without imposing himself or his ideals on others." He "cared so deeply about humanity, about Black people, about his people."

Nyong'o closed her tribute to Boseman with a promise to honour his memory by not wasting her time and she hoped others would do the same. She said that time will tell when she can fully accept that he is gone.