Graham Greene dies: What caused Oscar-nominated ‘Dances With Wolves’ actor's death?

Actor Graham Greene died Monday, 1 September, in Stratford, Ontario, his manager confirmed. The Oscar nominee from Dances with Wolves was 73.

He breathed his last at a Toronto hospital after a long illness. "It is with deep sadness we announce the peaceful passing of award-winning legendary Canadian actor Graham Greene," Gerry Jordan was quoted by CBC News as saying.

What led to Graham Greene's death?

Graham Greene's manager told CBC News that the actor died of "natural causes," and that details regarding a remembrance celebration will be shared in the coming days.

“He was a great man of morals, ethics and character and will be eternally missed. You are finally free. Susan Smith is meeting you at the gates of heaven,” his agent, Michael Greene, said in a statement to Deadline. Smith was Greene's previous agent, who died in October 2013.

Who was Graham Greene?

Greene was born in 1952 in Ohsweken, on the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario, Canada. He began his acting career in the theatre and was appearing in professional stage productions by the 1970s.

As per the Guardian, Greene started on stage, performing in Canadian and English productions in the 1970s, before making his screen debut in 1979 in an episode of the Canadian drama The Great Detective.

A pioneer for Indigenous actors in Hollywood, Greene made his debut in the 1979 Canadian drama series The Great Detective and in the 1983 biopic Running Brave.

But his big Hollywood break came with Dances with Wolves, in which he co-starred as ‘Kicking Bird.’ The role earned him an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor in 1991. 

The film was nominated for 12 Oscars and won seven, including for best picture and best director for Kevin Costner.

He went on to appear in such high-profile features as Maverick (1994) with Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster, Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995) with Bruce Willis, The Green Mile (1999) with Tom Hanks, The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson as well as Aaron Sorkin’s Molly’s Game (2017) with Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba and Costner.

Greene won Grammy, Gemini and Canadian Screen awards throughout his career and has a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame. In June, he received the Canadian Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for lifetime achievement. 

Greene, who worked until the end, has one upcoming movie in the can: thriller Ice Fall starring Joel Kinnaman.

Greene is survived by his wife, Hilary Blackmore (35), and his daughter Lilly Lazare-Greene.