Actor Ray Stevenson (Rome, Ahsoka) passed away at the age of 58

Ray Stevenson, a character actor best known for his roles in Rome and multiple Marvel films, has passed away at the age of 58. An early character actor, Stevenson is best known for his roles in Punisher: War Zone and the HBO series Rome. After playing Frank Castle/The Punisher in the 2008 movie, the Irish actor played a different character, Volstagg, in the first three Thor movies of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Stevenson also appears in the upcoming Star Wars series, Ahsoka.



Stevenson (pictured) died in Italy on Sunday at the age of 58, just four days short of his birthday. The news of his death was confirmed by the actor's publicists, although the cause of death has not yet been revealed. Italian newspaper La Repubblica previously reported that Stevenson was hospitalized on the island of Ischia during production of the film Cassino on Ischia.

Born in Lisburn on 25 May 1964 and trained at Bristol Old Vic Theater School, the Irish actor has been a well-known sight since the early 1990s, although his breakthrough role came in the 1998 film The Theory of Flight starring Helena Bonham Carter. Stevenson is known for multiple Marvel movies, playing the titular vigilante in the R-rated cult favorite Punisher: War Zone and Volstagg, an Asgardian warrior and member of the Warriors Three, in the MCU's Thor movies. One of Stevenson's most recent roles was as the imperial villain in the Tollywood blockbuster RRR.



On television, Stevenson played in Rome (photo) and guest starred in popular series such as Dexter, The Walking Dead, Black Sails and Vikings. He visited a galaxy far, far away as the voice of Gar Saxon in the animated series Star Wars Rebels and Star Wars: The Clone Wars before making the jump to live-action as another character, Baylan Skoll, in the upcoming Ahsoka series, the recordings of which were completed last October. With Ray Stevenson passing away at the age of 58, the live-action Star Wars series will be one of the beloved actor's final appearances when it premieres on Disney+ on Thursday, August 31.