Source: Entertainment Weekly

Michael Wright, the actor best known for his work in The Five Heartbeats, has died.

The actor’s wife, Susan, released a statement on social media on Friday announcing that he died at 70. She did not disclose Wright’s cause of death in the statement, though TMZ reported that he died from heart failure as well as complications from Marchiafava-Bignami, a rare degenerative neurological disease.

“It is with profound sadness and an unimaginable heaviness in my heart that I share the passing of my beloved husband, Michael Wright,” Susan began in her statement. “His talent, presence, and contributions to film and television will live on, but to those of us who loved him personally, he was so much more than the roles the world knew him for.”

Susan said that her family is “grieving an enormous and deeply personal loss,” adding, “We understand how much Michael meant to so many people, and we are grateful for the love, prayers, memories, and condolences already being shared.”

The statement continued, “We respectfully ask the public, members of the media, and those who knew and admired Michael to please allow our family the privacy and grace to grieve during this incredibly difficult time. We also ask that people refrain from sharing unconfirmed information or speaking on behalf of our family.”

Hayden Panettiere arrives for the amfAR Gala Los Angeles, honoring Paramount Pictures and US singer Kelly Rowland, at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, California, on November 3, 2022

Born in New York City in 1956, Wright began his career on stage in the late 1970s and made his screen debut in 1979’s The Wanderers opposite Ken Wahl and a pre-Raiders of the Lost Ark Karen Allen. He went on to play Elias Taylor on the hit 1983 sci-fi miniseries V as well as its 1984 follow-up V: The Final Battle and V: The Series. He won the Best Actor Award at the Venice Film Festival alongside his costars in Robert Altman’s Streamers in 1983.

Wright romanced Kanako Higuchi in the Japanese wartime drama Bedtime Eyes and acted alongside Jim Belushi in The Principal, both in 1987. Four years later, his most prominent screen project arrived: The Five Heartbeats, which saw him portray Eddie King, Jr., the lead vocalist of a fictional R&B quintet loosely inspired by the Dells, the Temptations, and others.

He also starred alongside Wesley Snipes in the 1994 crime drama Sugar Hill, costarred with Chris Tucker and Charlie Sheen in Brett Ratner’s 1997 comedy Money Talks, and played opposite Mickey Rourke and Danny Trejo in 1998’s Point Blank. He later appeared in Sydney Pollack’s The Interpreter, which starred Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn.

Wright’s best-known TV project of the 21st century was HBO’s Oz, in which he portrayed inmate Omar White. He also appeared on two episodes of the CW’s DC superhero show Black Lightning, and guested on episodes of Miami Vice, Nash Bridges, Rel, and Transitions.