Slater Vance, Son of Angela Bassett, Apologizes for Pulling Celebrity Death Prank on Parents

Slater Vance, the 16-year-old son of Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance, decided to join in on the viral celebrity death prank trend on TikTok. In a video that has since been deleted, Slater records himself asking his parents if they heard Michael B. Jordan was dead at 35 – he, of course, was alive and well. 

“Wait. Mom, Dad. Did you read this? Michael B. Jordan dead at 35?” he said in the video. His mother is in obvious disbelief as she rushes over to see where he got that information – in the background, his father can be heard saying, “You’ve gotta be kidding me.” Slater is smiling and laughing throughout the video. 

Not only has Slater Vance deleted the video from his TikTok page, but he then posted a one-minute-long apology video for taking part in the trend – which has received its fair share of criticism as people around the world take part in it. Apparently, Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance didn’t find it very funny. 

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“I would sincerely like to apologize for taking part in such a harmful trend. I apologize to Michael B. Jordan’s entire family, extended family, and him directly, as he is an idol of mine. Taking part in a trend like this is completely disrespectful,” said Slater in the video – visibly shaken up and holding back tears.

Angela Bassett and Michael B. Jordan were castmates in 2018’s Black Panther and 2022’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever – Bassett played Queen Ramonda in the film, while Jordan played Erik Killmonger. The two clearly have a tight relationship, considering her reaction to the fake death news. 

Slater continued his apology with a message to others taking part in the trend. “I own this was a mistake and I hope this can be a teaching lesson to anyone else that uses social media as a tool and a source of entertainment to truly understand that your actions can have consequences that extend beyond you.” 

The apology video was posted on December 31st and has since been watched nearly 80,000 times and liked by more than 3,000 people. He hasn’t posted anything since the apology video and it’s unclear if his parents have disciplined him in any way. Still, thousands of other people have taken part in the trend.

Angela Bassett Opens Up About Filming ‘Wakanda Forever’ Without Chadwick Boseman

Angela Bassett has been vocal about the pain and grief she felt while filming the latest edition to the Black Panther series – Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which premiered in the United States on November 11th. In the film, she plays the mother of T’Challa, who was famously played by Chadwick Boseman. 

Boseman passed away in 2020 after a four-year battle with colon cancer, bringing an end to the beloved character that made Black Panther such a special movie. That’s what made Bassett’s return to the film so emotional – and likely why she reacted the way she did when her son played the celebrity death prank. 

Before the release of the film, Angela Bassett sat down with TODAY and spoke about the passion she – along with the rest of the cast – poured into the latest film. “We stood proud. We stood strong, and we did exactly what he would’ve done,” she said, adding that filming the movie was exhilarating, to say the least.

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“I was really, really very proud of what we all collectively were able to do in the midst of our loss of such a linchpin to the franchise, to the movie, to our lives,” Bassett continued. As a result of her excellence in the film, Bassett has already been nominated for a Golden Globe – Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture.