On the third anniversary of the release of Black Panther, Marvel fans are once again mourning the painful loss of Chadwick Boseman. Certainly, there's an awful lot that can happen in the span of three years. After Black Panther broke all kinds of records and further established Boseman as a major player in Hollywood, the beloved actor's life was tragically cut short in the fall of 2020 after a private, years-long battle with colon cancer.

"I saw Black Panther in theaters 3 years ago today. Rest in power Chadwick," wrote a Marvel fan on Twitter.

Another fan tweeted, "BLACK PANTHER came out today in 2018. Miss you Chadwick!"

"In my culture, death is not the end. It's more of a stepping-off point. You reach out with both hands, and Bast and Sekhmet, they lead you into the green veld where you can run forever," another fan writes, quoting the movie. The post adds, "On this day in 2018, Black Panther hit theaters. Rest in Power, Chadwick."

"Black Panther was released 3 years ago today," another tribute post starts. "A monumental era for the MCU and perhaps the most important Marvel film yet. It's gut-wrenchingly devastating that our king is no longer with us but we will continue to honour and celebrate him."

And another tweet reads, "R.I.P Chadwick Boseman! He will always be the best Black Panther ever! No one will replace him! Wakanda forever!"

Directed by Ryan Coogler, Black Panther was released in theaters on Feb. 16, 2018. Along with Boseman in the lead role, the superhero movie also stars Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Martin Freeman, Daniel Kaluuya, Letitia Wright, and Angela Bassett also starred. Ultimately, the movie grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide to become the ninth-highest grossing movie of all time. A critically-acclaimed hit, Black Panther is also the first superhero movie to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. The role also got Boseman award wins at the Black Reel Awards, the MTV Movie Awards, and the BET Awards, among others.

Prior to his death, Chadwick Boseman planned to reprise the role of King T'Challa in Black Panther 2 with Coogler also returning to direct. When Boseman died in August, plans were changed to move forward with the sequel without the actor in the lead. It's not yet known who will serve as the new Black Panther, stepping into the role previously held by T'Challa. What we do know is that Boseman won't be digitally inserted into the sequel with CGI, nor will his role be recast, out of respect to the late actor.

Black Panther 2 is scheduled to be released on July 8, 2022. Coogler is also further expanding the world of Wakanda with a new series for Disney+. It's painful that Boseman is no longer here to see the franchise he helped launch continue to grow in such an extraordinary way, but these projects will help to honor his legacy as King T'Challa. In honor of Boseman and the third anniversary of Black Panther, you can catch another viewing of the movie today streaming on Disney+.