Chadwick Boseman’s $4 Million Estate: Who Inherited It And How Taylor Simone Ledward Shaped His Legacy

Chadwick Boseman worked like a rocket on a mission, even while fighting stage IV colon cancer in private. He died on August 28, 2020, at just 43. What happened after is surprisingly straightforward for a Hollywood estate: no will, yes probate, and a clean split that avoided the usual mess.

Where the money landed after he passed

First, the net worth numbers. Depending on who you asked at the time, Boseman was worth anything from around $12 million (a figure floated by multiple outlets) to $4 million (Celebrity Net Worth’s estimate). That money came from acting checks, bonuses, endorsements, and some investments. Not exactly a small spread, but welcome to celebrity accounting.

He died without a will, so his widow, Taylor Simone Ledward, petitioned a Los Angeles court to administer the estate. The estate continued earning after his death: more than $230,000 in residuals rolled in, because yes, the checks keep showing up long after the credits roll.

The estate accounting: what came in and what went out

According to the filings, the total inventoried estate value came in at $3,881,758.31. A big chunk of that was residuals that started hitting in March 2021: one payment of $187,000, then three more in 2021 totaling $14,000, and another reported check in March 2022 for $2,453. The documents noted no other assets had turned up, with Ledward continuing to deposit residuals into the estate and corporate accounts.

Ledward asked the court to reimburse roughly $47,000 for expenses tied to Boseman’s funeral and burial, itemized down to the dollar. That included $9,500 for the venue, $10,000 for the service, $1,275 for flowers, $7,495 for a mausoleum crypt at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Anderson, South Carolina, and another $22,000 to purchase adjoining crypts for his parents, Leroy and Carolyn, so they could be laid next to him. It’s solemn, specific, and very human.

On taxes, Ledward told the court there was no real property and no real estate tax due, and that all required California and federal income taxes had been paid. One wrinkle: the estate received a $51,000 tax bill tied to Boseman’s company. The plan at the time was to fight it.

By June 2022, nearly two years after his death, the estate had about $2.5 million on hand, with $157,000 in cash. Another $900,000 sat as a bond in the probate case. After paying a couple of bills, the pot was approximately $2.3 million.

How it was ultimately split

Ledward asked the court to divide what was left right down the middle: 50% to her, 50% to Boseman’s parents, Leroy and Carolyn. That’s what was proposed, and there have been no reports of any inheritance drama between his widow and his family since. For a high-profile estate, that’s refreshingly calm.

Taylor and Chadwick: the quiet love story

If you only saw the red carpets, you missed most of their relationship by design. Boseman and Ledward kept things private. The first public sighting dates to 2015 at LAX. In 2017, they were photographed outside the Jimmy Kimmel Live! studio. By 2018, they were hitting a Black Panther afterparty in New York and sitting courtside at the NBA All-Star Game. Around then, Ledward’s grandmother publicly said the two respected each other and were very happy together.

They made it official in front of cameras at the 2019 Screen Actors Guild Awards, where he was nominated for Black Panther. Later that year at the NAACP Image Awards, he won Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture and made a point to thank her. Before he took the stage, he kissed her; from the crowd, she mouthed 'I love you' back and blew him a kiss.

'You know what they say. Black people always thank God when they win, and I’m not going to let you down. Thank you, God, for not just winning. Thank you, God, for the trials and tribulations that you allow us to go through so we can appreciate these moments. So we can appreciate the joy that comes from winning. Simone, you’re with me every day. I have to acknowledge you right now. Love you.'

Reports say he proposed in 2019, and their final public appearance together was the 2020 NBA All-Star Game in Chicago that February. They quietly married in the final months of his life. Through it all, she stayed close, supporting him and helping make sure he took care of himself while he kept working.

What he got paid

For the number-crunchers, here’s what is known (and not known) about Boseman’s salaries. It’s a mix of reported figures and industry estimates:

• Black Panther: about $2 million upfront, plus box office bonuses
• Captain America: Civil War: roughly $700,000
• Avengers: Infinity War: not publicly disclosed
• Avengers: Endgame: not publicly disclosed
• 42: around $1 million
• Get On Up: around $1.5 million
• Marshall: around $1 million

On top of the acting checks, there were endorsements and promotional deals, plus reported investments in real estate and production companies. He also put time, money, and attention into supporting Black-owned businesses and community initiatives. The man worked, then he reinvested where it mattered to him.

Bottom line: the headline numbers bounced around, the probate math got granular, and the split landed where everyone could live with it. No spectacle, just a family closing the books and moving forward — which, given everything else, feels exactly right.