Renowned Actor Nelsan Ellis, well known for playing Lafayette on HBO’s smash hit “True Blood”, who passed away on Saturday 8th of June, has left many fans Surprised.
The 39-year-old actor allegedly passed away after complications from a heart failure according to a statement released by HBO on Saturday which went on to read:
“We were extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Nelsan Ellis,” HBO said in the statement. “Nelsan was a long-time member of the HBO family whose groundbreaking portrayal of Lafayette will be remembered fondly within the overall legacy of ‘True Blood.’ Nelsan will be dearly missed by his fans and all of us at HBO.” The statement continued.
Since the release of the statement by HBO statement on Saturday, there was no official communication on Ellis’ cause of death until on Monday when his family went ahead to release a statement on the cause of his death via his agent.
The statement read, “Nelsan’s father has bravely agreed for me to share the circumstances of Nelsan’s heart failure. Nelsan has suffered with drug and alcohol abuse for years.” Ellis agent expressed.
The statement revealed that Ellis had spent some time in rehab on his road to recovery, but wanted to try to quit by himself. According to Ellis’ father, “during his withdrawal from alcohol he had a blood infection, his kidneys shut down, his liver was swollen, his blood pressure plummeted, and his dear sweet heart raced out of control.” The statement also said that Ellis was ashamed of his addiction a situation which made him not to discuss the addiction publicly while he was alive.
The entertainment industry has truly lost an Icon and sadly at a very young age. His work will be missed by all, May his soul rest in Peace.
