Actor James Ransone died Friday from an apparent suicide according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner. He was 46 years old.
The American actor was best known for playing Ziggy Sobotka in the TV series, “The Wire,” and for his role as Eddie Kaspbrak in the horror movie, “It: Chapter Two.”
He played roles in shows such as “Generation Kill” and “Bosch,” with his final TV appearance in a Season 2 episode of “Poker Face” that aired in June, according to TMDB.
Ransone’s other film credits included roles in the “Sinister” horror franchise, “Tangerine,” “Mr. Right” and the “Black Phone” series of films.
Ransone opened up about the social challenges he faced growing up in a conversation with Interview Magazine in 2016.
“I did not fit in well with all of the kids,” he said. “Adolescence was a really hard time for me—as I think it is for most kids.”
Ransone said he had a hard time with “normal public schools,” so his mother found an arts school he could audition for, and he jumped at the opportunity.
“I think it saved me as a kid,” Ransone said. “Going to arts school saved me.”
Ransone later attended film school in New York, but said he failed because he “didn’t show up to class.”
Ransone “kicked around for a couple of years,” and pursued some smaller acting opportunities while also playing a lot of music, at one point considering a career as a musician.
After a few years, Ransone realized that acting was his calling.
“I woke up at 27 after being on heroin for five years,” Ransone said. “It was like I sobered up and I realized, ‘My job is being an actor. This is crazy!'”
Ransone said he sobered up six or seven months before working on “Generation Kill,” a job that ended up being a transformative experience for the actor.
Given that his father was a Vietnam war veteran, Ransone said that being around marines who had fought in war while they were young allowed him to see a” version of [his] dad as a young man.”
“A lot of things started to make sense to me in a different way,” Ransone said. “It didn’t do so much for my career but it shaped me and the way that I think about my life,” he added.
Ransone is survived by his wife, Jamie McPhee, and their two children.
NBC News reached out to Ransone’s representatives but did not immediately hear back.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 or go to 988lifeline.org to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.
