Actor Andre Braugher passed away at the age of 61

LOS ANGELES – Emmy-winning actor Andre Braugher, known for his roles on “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “Brooklyn 99,” died Monday at the age of 61.

Braugher’s publicist, Jennifer Allen, confirmed his death to trade publication Variety.

The Chicago-born actor played his breakthrough role in 1989’s “Glory,” opposite Morgan Freeman and Denzel Washington, who won an Oscar for the film about an all-black army regiment during the Civil War.

Despite his role, he told the Associated Press in 2019 that he struggled to find work in Hollywood, where roles for African American actors were “few and far between.” Period.”

However, he would take on the role of Det. Frank Pembleton would star for seven seasons on NBC’s gritty police drama “Homicide: Life on the Street,” based on a book by David Simon, who would later create “The Wire.”

He would win his first career Emmy for this role, receiving the award for lead actor in a drama series in 1998.

He would win his second award as a leading actor in a miniseries or movie for the 2006 limited series “Thief” on FX. Braugher has been nominated for 11 Emmys overall.

Years later, he would play a very different kind of cop in a very different kind of series, and would transition to comedy as Captain Ray Holt in Andy Samberg’s “Brooklyn Nine-Nine”. It will air for eight seasons on Fox and NBC from 2013 to 2021.

Although he broke into comedy in the TNT drama “Men of a Different Age,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” still represented a big change for Braugher, who was known for his acting in dark and heavy dramas.

“I felt like there was an opportunity to do something that was strikingly different from the rest of my career,” Braugher told the AP. “I like it because it just opens my mind and forces me to think in a different way. “So I think I’ve become much more flexible as an actor and more open to an incredible number of possibilities of how to play a scene.”

It was nominated for four Emmys during its run.

He was married to his “Homicide” co-star Ami Brabson for more than 30 years. They had three sons.

His death was first reported by Deadline.

First Publication Date: 12 December 2023, 20:18