4 Sep – Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominee Michael Clarke Duncan took his last breath on Monday morning after nearly two months of treatment following a heart attack on 13 July, according to The Guardian.
Duncan, 54, was suffering from a myocardial infarction which he never fully recovered from. He passed away in a hospital in Los Angeles and was survived by his fiancée, the Rev. Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth, who gained fame by being a two-time participant on "The Apprentice".
"I am devastated. He was the love of my life," said Omarosa.
Since the announcement of "The Green Mile" star's death was made public, some of Hollywood's biggest stars have voiced out their grief and sentiments.
"I am terribly saddened at the loss of Big Mike," said Tom Hanks, who was Duncan's co-star in "The Green Mile".
He added, "He was the treasure we all discovered on the set of "The Green Mile". He was magic. He was a big love of man and his passing leaves us stunned."
"When something happens, we always say it happens for a reason' ~ Michael Clarke Duncan 12/10/57 - 9/3/12 I'll miss you my brother," said Dwayne Johnson, who starred with Duncan in 2002's "The Scorpion King".
Duncan was born in Illinois, Chicago, on 10 December 1957. Before he had a spotlight in Hollywood, the 6 feet 5 inches tall man earned a living by digging ditches for a gas company. Later, he served as a bodyguard for celebrities which includes Will Smith, Jamie Foxx and Notorious B.I.G in the early 1990s.
In 1998, the 315-pound actor gained the attention of moviegoers with his role as Bear in Michael Bay's "Armageddon", where he struck up a friendship with fellow cast member Bruce Willis. It was this friendship that led Duncan to obtain his breakthrough role as John Coffey, a wrongly convicted murderer with extraordinary powers of healing in Frank Darabont's 1999 Oscar-nominated film "The Green Mile", alongside Tom Hanks and David Morse. The movie had earned Duncan nominations at the Oscars and Golden Globes, and wins at the Black Reel Awards, Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards and Saturn Awards for Best Supporting Actor.
Duncan's other credits were "The Whole Nine Yards", "Planet Of The Apes", "Sin City", "Kung Fu Panda" and "Green Lantern". His final movie appearances are in Kent Moran's action drama "The Challenger" and Cliff Dorfman's "Criminal Empire For Dummies", which also stars Gary Oldman.
