On Monday, the New York Post reported that actor Michael Kenneth Williams had passed away at the age of 54. His body was found in his Brooklyn apartment by a family member. There’s already speculation about how he died, but none of that will change the fact that we lost one of the best actors working today.
While Williams might be best known for his role as Omar on The Wire, his career was filled with characters that garnered him plenty of fans and awards. His Emmy nominated turn as Montrose Freeman in Lovecraft Country was one of my all-time favorite performances by any actor.
In addition to his prolific film and television work, Williams started Making Kids Win, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping at-risk youth. He also recently teamed up with NYC Together to help find and create summer work opportunities for kids.
Williams was also passionate about criminal justice and prison reform, exploring the topic in depth in both his work on screen and via political activism. His powerful Vice episode Raised in the System earned one of his many Emmy nominations.
In both fiction and non-fiction settings, Michael K. Williams commanded whatever space he was in. In addition to losing one of our favorite actors today, we also lost a wonderful person.
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