‘Black Panther’ star Chadwick Boseman gives his MTV Movie award to real-life Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr.

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share via Email
• Copy Link

  Link Copied

[griojw id=”RLxwLfh7″ playerid=”GqX43ZoG”]

Chadwick Boseman may play a hero in the movies, but he wants us all to recognize the real-life heroes who live amongst us.

During a broadcast that aired Monday, the Black Panther star was accepting his MTV Movie & TV Award for best hero in a movie when he decided to invite James Shaw Jr. to the stage. Shaw is the brave man who made national news in April after he wrestled an assault-style rifle away from a gunman at a Tennessee Waffle House.

“Receiving an award for playing a superhero is amazing, but it’s even greater to acknowledge the heroes that we have in real life,” Boseman said.

READ MORE: 7 Biggest, Blackest & Most Shocking Moments of the MTV Movie & TV Awards

“So I just want to acknowledge somebody that’s here today. James Shaw Jr. Where are you? Stand. If you don’t know James Shaw Jr., he fought off a gunman in Antioch, Tennessee at a Waffle House. He saved lives. Come on up here.”

Shaw had been grazed by a bullet while grappling with the gunman Travis Reinking and burned his right hand while grabbing the barrel of the weapon. The shooting left four people dead and two injured but would have surely had a largely body count without his bravery and interference.

READ MORE: Watch Michael B. Jordan accept Best Villain award and shade Roseanne at MTV Awards

In the following days, he launched a GoFundMe to help the victims and their families. And the account has raised over $240,000. He later wrote on Instagram that MTV had invited him to the awards show, which was is why he was in the audience when the 40-year-old actor took the stage.

When he made it to the mic stand, Boseman quickly handed him the golden popcorn award, stating, “This is gonna live at your house.”

Boseman, who starred as T’Challa in Black Panther, also won the award for best performance in a movie. His costar, Michael B. Jordan, who played the villain Erik Killmonger, won Best Villain.

READ MORE: Ava DuVernay sets record as first Black female director with $100 million box office score