Tommy “Tiny” Lister, who appeared in the movies “Friday” and “The Fifth Element” and was also a professional wrestler, has died.
He died Thursday, Dec 10, his manager Cindy Cowan confirmed.
Cowan said he was found unresponsive in his apartment in Marina del Rey, California, after displaying symptoms of COVID-19 in recent days.
He had been working on a film and had to cancel shooting after falling ill, Cowan said.
She added: “He was a wonderful guy with a heart of gold. Everyone loved him. A real gentle giant. We’re all devastated.”
Tiny wrestled Hulk Hogan in the World Wrestling Federation after appearing as Zeus in 1989’s “No Holds Barred.” He later spent time in World Championship Wrestling, where he was billed as Z-Gangsta.
The actor, who was blind in his right eye, played the neighborhood bully Deebo in the 1995 movie “Friday” and appeared in the sequel “Next Friday.”
His other appearances include playing a prisoner in “The Dark Knight,” and the bail agent in “Jackie Brown,” as well as roles in “The Players Club,” and “Posse.”
He had a supporting role in “Zootopia” as the voice of the fennec fox, in Adam Sandler’s “Little Nicky” as Nicky’s brother Cassius, and in “Austin Powers in Goldmember”. In “The Fifth Element,” he played the Galactic President.
In the pilot of “Star Trek: Enterprise,” he played Klaang, the first Klingon to make contact with humans. Also on television, he appeared as Mr. Matlock’s bodyguard in “Matlock” and on “In the Heat of the Night.”
