The Rock posted a touching tribute to John Hurt with the late actor’s advice on being “the boss”

The worlds of film, television and theatre lost one of the acting profession’s most accomplished performers when John Hurt passed away this week.

Aged 77, the star of iconic films such as The Elephant Man, 1984 and Alien died at his home in Norfolk after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. As the news broke that Hurt had died, tributes flooded in from friends, colleagues, fellow actors and well-wishers.

J.K. Rowling, Elijah Wood, Stephen Fry and Mel Brooks were among the many famous names who mourned the actor’s passing and celebrated his life and work.

Though perhaps best known for his incredible performance as John Merrick in The Elephant Man, Hurt also appeared in a number of blockbuster films, including 2014’s Hercules, where he starred alongside Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.

Earlier, Johnson posted a tribute to his late co-star, in which he fondly remembered the time the two spent together, recalling a lunch in which Hurt laid out Johnson’s “responsibilities” in Hollywood after becoming, as Hurt put it, “the boss”.

RIP my friend. Legend John Hurt. For months, we spent very long days and nights together in Budapest, while shooting Hercules – very tough shoot. A real honor to act and learn from this man and even better than that, become buds. There’s nothing that invaluable OG insight, and I’ll always be grateful for the wisdom he shared w/ me. One time in London, we had an epic convo over lunch. John broke it down to me, on what my responsibilities are in Hollywood now after becoming, in his words, “the boss”. I’m laughing right now as I type this, because I can still hear him and his iconic British accent just droppin’ those OG pearls. Legend. Prayers, love, strength and light to the Hurt family during this time of loss. Thank you, brother. For everything. #JohnHurt

A photo posted by therock (@therock) on Jan 28, 2017 at 9:44am PST

Here’s what Johnson said:

RIP my friend. Legend John Hurt.

For months, we spent very long days and nights together in Budapest, while shooting Hercules – very tough shoot. A real honor to act and learn from this man and even better than that, become buds.

There’s nothing that invaluable OG insight, and I’ll always be grateful for the wisdom he shared w/ me. One time in London, we had an epic convo over lunch. John broke it down to me, on what my responsibilities are in Hollywood now after becoming, in his words, “the boss”.

I’m laughing right now as I type this, because I can still hear him and his iconic British accent just droppin’ those OG pearls. Legend. Prayers, love, strength and light to the Hurt family during this time of loss. Thank you, brother. For everything. #JohnHurt

There’s no denying that Johnson is now the boss in Hollywood, but even as recently as 2014, he wasn’t the box office stalwart that he is now. Clearly John Hurt saw something that we couldn’t see yet, perhaps another string to his already impressive bow.

Feature: Aaron Davidson / Vittorio Zunino Celotto / Getty

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