Dances with Wolves Actor Graham Greene Dies at 73
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
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Graham Greene attends the nominees luncheon for 63rd Annual Academy Awards on March 19, 1991 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Credit :
Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- Graham Greene has died at 73 years old
- The Dances with Wolves actor died on Monday, Sept. 1, in a Toronto hospital, per Deadline
- The actor earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in 1991
Actor Graham Greene, known for his role in Dances with Wolves, has died. He was 73.
The actor died on Monday, Sept. 1, in a Toronto hospital, Deadline , which was first to report the news, reported. He died "after a lengthy illness," his agent Michael Greene tells PEOPLE.
"Michael Greene loved all he did for his people and for the world. He was a great man of Morals Ethics ❤️ Character and will be eternally missed. We love you, my brother greene. God bless you
You are finally free. Susan Smith is meeting you at the gates of heaven, God bless you," says Michael in a statement shared with PEOPLE.
Smith is Greene's previous agent, who died in October 2013 .
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Graham Greene in Dances With Wolves.
Orion/Kobal/Shutterstock
Greene is most known for his breakthrough role as Kicking Bird (Ziŋtká Nagwáka) in Kevin Costner 's 1990 directorial debut, Dances with Wolves , a film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Michael Blake. The film earned Greene an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
The nomination was one of 12 scored by the movie . The project won seven of the categories, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
In a 2017 interview with Reader's Digest Canada , Greene shared what he remembered most about the project — his horse.
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Graham Greene during the 2018 National Memorial Day Concert at U.S. Capitol, West Lawn on May 27, 2018.
Paul Morigi/Getty
"He and I got on like a house on fire. On the last day I was shooting, this kid came up and told me it had been his—turns out he’d had to sell it. After filming, I went to the producers and said, 'Make sure this kid gets his horse back. Take it out of my salary if you have to," he recalled.
Acting was something he told Readers Digest Canada he "stumbled into."
"I started out as a carpenter, a welder, a draftsman, a carpet layer, a roadie and an audio tech. I stumbled into acting and I thought, 'These people keep me in the shade, give me food and water, take me over to where I say what I’m supposed to say, then they take me back. Wow—this is the life of a dog,' " he told the outlet in 2017.
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Kevin Costner and Graham Greene in Dances with Wolves.
Orion/Kobal/Shutterstock
His acting career would take him to new heights as he would go on to appear in multiple classic films , such as 1994's Maverick , 1995's Die Hard With a Vengeance , 1999's The Green Mile , 2009's The Twilight Saga: New Moon , and 2012's The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 .
His career would also extend into television with credits that include Northern Exposure , Murder She Wrote , Lonesome Dove: The Series , Being Erica, Longmire and Goliath .
Greene is also a Grammy winner , having won in 2000 for the best spoken word album for children for his work on Listen to the Storyteller .
He is survived by his wife Hilary Blackmore, daughter Lilly Lazare-Greene and grandson Tarlo.
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A film not mentioned - his actual "first" was Pow-Wow Highway and he did a great job. Commanding in Reservation Dogs.
Worked with him in 1992 (roughly for 5 minutes - I was an extra) in Broken Chains. Friendliest person on the set - made you feel like a lifelong friend.
Gave his heart and soul to his performances.
RIP Graham - you will be missed.
A real shame, he was fantastic.
RIP, Graham Greene. He had a wonderful screen presence. Loved him in Dances With Wolves.
I enjoyed watching him - he was ideal for the parts he played. He will be missed. I will miss him. He died too young.
Bummer. I really enjoyed his work.
RIP
The man was a natural actor and there wasn't a role I saw him in that I didn't like. Glad to hear he was as nice as he seemed. RIP
May his fire burn bright.
Very sad news... thought he was an excellent actor...
He seemed to have a warm soul and someone you could listen to for ages..
Maybe he might run into Kavika on the road to their next journey..🥀
I'm so sad to hear that he walked on. Another of the greats gone.
He was a tremendous actor. He certainly died way too young.