Lupita Nyong’o is looking back at the tragic death of her friend and Marvel co-star Chadwick Boseman, explaining that she was aware that the actor was experiencing health issues, but had no idea he was battling colon cancer.

Boseman died in August 2020 at the age of 43, after a 4-year battle of cancer, with fans of the actor paying tribute to him after being catapulted to fame after his iconic performance in ‘Black Panther.’

“I couldn’t believe it,” Lupita said during a recent interview promoting the upcoming sequel to the Marvel film. Lupita learned about the sad death of her friend through a text from her fellow star Viola Davis.

“I was paralyzed,” she continued explaining. “Losing your centerpiece, everything changed.” The actress says that Boseman “had an aura” and described him as “the leader.”

“When you say the world rotated around him, it revolved around him, it did,” Lupita said in reference to the admiration the cast and crew felt for him.

Following his death, the actress wrote an emotional message about Boseman. “I remember being struck by his quiet, powerful presence,” she wrote. “He had no airs about him, but there was a higher frequency that he seemed to operate from. You got the sense that he was fully present and also somehow fully aware of things in the distant future.”

Lupita had also revealed that she agreed with the decision of not recasting his character. “I know that there are all sorts of reasons why people want him to be recast, but I don’t have the patience. I don’t have the presence of mind, or I don’t have the objectivity to argue with that. I don’t. I’m very biased.”