The Wire and John Wick actor, Lance Reddick, dies aged 60

'A man of great strength and grace'

Reddick died Friday morning, one week before the release of John Wick Chapter 4, in which he reprises his role of Charon, the concierge at the Continental Hotel's New York City.

A spokesperson for the US actor, Mia Hansen, said he "passed away suddenly this morning from natural causes".

They added: "Lance will be greatly missed. Please respect his family's privacy at this time."

Reddick was best known for his role in Baltimore crime drama, The Wire, which ran for five seasons between 2002 and 2008. He played police lieutenant Cedric Daniels.

Reddick appeared in all 60 episodes alongside stars including Dominic West, Idris Elba, Wendell Pierce and Michael K Williams.

Pierce wrote on Twitter that Reddick's death was "sudden, unexpected, sharp, painful grief for our artistic family" and praised him as a "man of great strength and grace" as well as being the "epitome of elegance".

In a joint statement, Keanu Reeves, and John Wick director, Chad Stahelski said they will dedicate the latest sequel to Reddick.

"We are deeply saddened and heartbroken at the loss of our beloved friend and colleague Lance Reddick. He was the consummate professional and a joy to work with," they said. "Our love and prayers are with his wife Stephanie, his children, family and friends. We dedicate the film to his loving memory. We will miss him dearly."

Reddick appeared in all four John Wick movies, the last due for release in the UK next week.

Filmmaker James Gunn remembered Reddick as "an incredibly nice guy, and an incredibly talented actor".

Actor Michael Warburton described him as a "hell of an actor".

Screenwriter BJ Colangelo tweeted that Reddick "improved every single project just by being there".

Reddick landed recurring roles on CSI: Miami and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and appeared in several movies including The Siege and Great Expectations.

His upcoming projects included 20th Century's remake of White Men Can't Jump and Shirley - Netflix's biopic of former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm.

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