Veteran actor Bill Nunn, known for his role as Radio Raheem in Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing, has passed away.
His death was confirmed by Lee via Instagram Saturday afternoon (Sept. 24.) “Now resting in power,” Lee captioned the photo of Nunn’s character. “Radio Raheem will always be fighting the powers that be. May God watch over Bill Nunn.”
The actor made his film debut with Lee in 1988’s School Daze and continued to be a signature actor in the director’s films like She Got Game. Nunn went on to star in 90’s classics like Kiss the Girls, New Jack City, Mo’ Better Blues and Sister Act, but his most memorable character has been Radio Raheem. His recent credits include the USA comedy Sirens and his role as Joseph “Robbie” Robertson in the Spiderman trilogy.
Nunn was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a rich history–his grandfather was the first African-American football player at George Westinghouse High School. The actor attended Morehouse College in the 70’s, where he met Lee. The director continued to mourn for his longtime friend on social media by posting Nunn’s “Love/Hate monologue from the film.
A cause of death has not been made public. Nunn was 62-years-old.
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