Ray Stevenson, a Northern Irish actor who notably Volstagg in the Thor films, a legionnaire in the series Rome and who is to be featured in the next Star Wars series Ahsoka, has died at the age of 58. Stevenson's relatives said he died Sunday, four days before his birthday. Italian newspaper La Repubblica reported that he was suddenly hospitalized on the island of Ischia, while filming.
Ray Stevenson was born in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, in 1964. His family moved to England when he was eight years old. After a few years working in British television, he made his film debut in Paul Greengrass' 1998 film The Theory of Flight. In 2004, he appeared in Antoine Fuqua's King Arthur as a Knight of the Round Table. He will also star in an adaptation of Marvel comics featuring the hero Punisher. A few years later, he got a recurring supporting role in the Thor movies, where he played the god Volstagg.
But Ray Stevenson owes one of his most memorable roles on television, for which he played the legionnaire Titus Pullo in the HBO series Rome. The ambitious and very expensive series, however, has only had two seasons. "Those were some of the most important years of my life," Stevenson said in an interview with the Guardian. The ones that made me who I am and made me understand that you just have to work to succeed. Work is enough."
Harry Potter actor Matthew Lewis, who appeared alongside Ray Stevenson as a child in the TV movie Some Kind of Life, wrote on Twitter: "This is so sad. Ray played my dad in the first thing I did on TV. Almost 30 years ago. A true actor with a fascinating career and I couldn't have asked for a better first experience."
