Fortnite players honor Chadwick Boseman at game’s new Black Panther statue

Fortnite players now have a Black Panther statue they can visit in the game, and fans of the late Chadwick Boseman are sharing photos of their visits to the figure. CNET sister site ComicBook.com notes that the statue, known as Panther’s Prowl, can be found near the Misty Meadows area, and is one of several Marvel monuments added to the map since the game’s season 4 update last week. The statue isn’t of the superhero himself, but of a snarling, pacing, muscular black panther.

While the Black Panther statue appeared on Sept. 1, just days after Boseman’s Aug. 28 death, a spokesperson for Fortnite parent company Epic Games told Kotaku it was part of an already planned Marvel-themed game narrative, and not meant as a direct response to the news about Boseman.

“As with the rest of the world, we were greatly saddened to learn of the passing of actor Chadwick Boseman,” the spokesperson said. 

One Reddit user shared an image of two players declining to fight near the Black Panther statue. Others have shared images of their characters showing respect near the figure, including one dressed as Captain America, Black Panther’s fellow Avenger.

There may be more Black Panther arriving in Fortnite. As ComicBook.com reported, a Black Panther skin may be coming to the game sometime soon.

Boseman, who was just 43 when he died, was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2016, two years before the 2018 blockbuster Black Panther film came out, but he kept the news private. The future of the film’s sequel, Black Panther 2, is unknown.