Angela Bassett: 'Chadwick Boseman is completely irreplaceable'

Angela Bassett is glad Chadwick Boseman isn't being replaced in the Black Panther sequel.

The 43-year-old passed away in August after a private battle with colon cancer, and in December, it was announced that there were no plans to re-cast or digitally recreate Boseman's role as T'Challa in the upcoming Marvel sequel.

Bassett played the late actor's onscreen mother Ramonda in director Ryan Coogler's hugely successful 2018 blockbuster, and she said that she and her co-stars are still coming to terms with Boseman's death because nobody knew about his health struggles.

"Our brother held it really close, really close to the chest," she told Entertainment Tonight. "But his legacy, his loss, the love and appreciation that we have for who he was and what he shared with us cannot be (replaced).

"It is missed and appreciated and cannot be duplicated. It's a tremendous honour and, yes, he is completely irreplaceable."

The follow-up to Black Panther will reportedly focus on exploring the fictional world of Wakanda, and the American Horror Story star is excited to see what Coogler and Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige come up with.

"It's a tremendous loss but Kevin and the Marvel universe and Ryan, the director, the writer from before, they are committed to telling (a story) and equally as much as we can, equally planned," the 62-year-old continued. "So we are looking forward to that. Looking forward to what they come up with."