The MTV Movie & TV Awards gave Black Panther its first taste of awards glory, with Marvel’s blockbuster taking home four honours, including two awards for its star, Chadwick Boseman.
Boseman quickly handed off his best hero award to James Shaw Jr., who wrestled an assault-style rifle away from a gunman in a Tennessee Waffle House in April.
“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.
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He continued: “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, Tenn., at a Waffle House. He saved lives. Come on up here.”
“This is going to live at your house,” Boseman told Shaw, giving him the show’s golden popcorn award.
In April, a gunman opened fire at a Waffle House, killing four people and wounding several others. Shaw, 29, was grazed by a bullet while wrestling with the gunman and burned his right hand when he grabbed the barrel of the weapon.
He has since raised almost $250,000 for the victims and their families.
READ MORE: James Shaw Jr. wrestled an AR-15 away from an active shooter at a Tennessee Waffle House
Boseman took to Twitter to post a photo of himself and Shaw, writing, “THANK YOU #MTVAWARDS #BLACKPANTHER fans, you’re incredible. During the show, I was honoured to meet @JamesShawJr9. He saved countless lives by tackling a gunman who opened fire on people in Antioch,Tennessee in April. He’s a true hero that walks among us.”
Boseman, who starred as T’Challa in Black Panther, also won the award for best performance in a movie. Michael B. Jordan, who played the villain Erik Killmonger, won best villain.
Watch Boseman and Shaw in the video above.
—With files from the Associated Press