Damn, he passed away from a suspected overdose. Brilliant screen presence. His career was going so well, too, having recently scored an Emmy nomination for Lovecraft Country.
Oh, no! This is horribly sad news.
He was on WTF with Marc Maron not long ago… he discussed the challenge of shooting The Night Of given his history with drug addiction.
What a magnetic actor. Omar is a character for the ages.
Fuuuuuck! This one is hitting me hard - Omar is one of my all time favorite TV characters and he was so good in Lovecraft Country. Fuck fuck fuck.
This hits another kind of way now
Wow so sad to hear. RIP sir.
I see he is in the upcoming Battlefield 2142 game.
Damn, that video is heartbreaking.
RIP, far too soon.
Those looking for more of his work should check out Hap and Leonard.
Wendell Pierce, his Wire co-star, offered a beautiful tribute:
https://twitter.com/WendellPierce/status/1434986053539176456
The depth of my love for this brother, can only be matched by the depth of my pain learning of his loss. A immensely talented man with the ability to give voice to the human condition portraying the lives of those whose humanity is seldom elevated until he sings their truth.
If you don’t know, you better ask somebody. His name was Michael K. Williams. He shared with me his secret fears then stepped out into his acting with true courage, acting in the face of fear, not in the absence of it. It took me years to learn what Michael had in abundance.
He was proud of the artist he had become, asking for my advice long after he had surpassed any incite I could have shared. Always truthful, never inauthentic. The kindest of persons. Like two mischievous kids, we would laugh & joke whenever we would meet. Like Baltimore years ago
THE WIRE brought us together and immortalized Omar & Bunk in that “scene” on a park bench. But for us we aimed to take that moment in time together and say something about Black men. Our struggle with ourselves, internally, and each other. For me & Mike we had nothing but respect
So to you, my brother Mike, there is a small comfort that I know, you knew how much we loved you.
“There is a certain immortality involved in theater, not created by monuments and books, but through the knowledge an actor keeps to his dying day that on a certain afternoon, in an empty and dusty theater, he cast the shadow of a being that was not himself…….
No way :(
I loved him in everything except Community. What a godawful loss.
Damn. Now I’m going to have to watch all the seasons of the wire all over again.
What a shame. Such great performances in The Wire and Boardwalk Empire. RIP.
I loved him in Brooklyn Nine-Nine
What a loss.
One of my favorite actors ever. Such a terrible loss.
Very sad to hear. RIP.
I had never seen that before, and it’s amazing.
This was genuinely amazing, thank you for sharing it. RIP to Michael. I need to watch The Wire.
I heard this morning. Such a great acting talent.
Yes. Yes you do.
Awesome series, awesome performance by Michael K. Williams.
I rewatched The Wire recently and it definitely holds up; the fact that the coolest character is an unapologetically gay street robber just makes it even better.
RIP Omar.
I just finished my third complete viewing of The Wire. Something I’ve not done for any drama.
Just so sad.
Did not know he started as a dancer and choreographer.