Golden Globe winning actor Fred Ward has died at the age of 79.
The actor - who appeared in The Right Stuff, Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins and Tremors- was confirmed to have passed away by representatives of the late star to the New York Post on Friday.
"I am sad to announce the passing of acclaimed actor Fred Ward, who passed away on Sunday, May 8, 2022 at age 79," the statement revealed to the American publication.
It has been reported that no cause of death has been revealed, as per his family's wishes.
The late star San Diego on December 30, 1942 and spent three years in the United States Air Force before beginning his successful acting career.
In addition to working as an actor, Fred also enjoyed stints as a boxer, a lumberjack, a cook and a janitor.
After studying his craft in Italy, the late star's big break came when he landed a major role in Clint Eastwood's Escape from Alcatraz in 1979.
The dad-of-one would go on to star in many more big productions, including; Southern Comfort, The Right Stuff, Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, Tremors and Tremors 2: Aftershocks, Henry & June, The Player, Swing Shift and Short Cuts.
Fred was no stranger to the small screen either - appearing in popular TV shows such as Grey's Anatomy, ER and most recently, True Detective in 2015.
One of the late actor's most notable leading roles came in 1993, when he starred as fisherman Stuart Kane in the Robert Altman film Short Cuts.
His performance, alongside his co-stars, saw the whole ensemble honoured with a Golden Globe.
Fred was known for often carrying out his own stunt work - confirming he performed most of the stunts himself in portrayal of the title hero in the action movie Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins,
Away from the cameras, Fred resided in the Venice neighbourhood of Los Angeles and was married three times throughout his life.
He was a father to a son, Django, from his time with his second wife Silvia Ward.
It is believed that at the time of his death he was still married to his third wife Marie-France Boisselle.
The pair had tied the knot in 1995 but filed for divorce in August 2013, only to reconcile later the same year.
As news of Fred's passing began to break on Friday, tributes to the late actor began to pour in across social media.
"Fred Ward was great in just about everything he did. You’ll hear a lot about TREMORS in your feed but he’s also amazing in HENRY & JUNE (the first NC-17 movie), and fantastic in MIAMI BLUES. Sad day," journalist Phil Nobile took to Twitter to share shortly after his death was confirmed.
Another fan added: "RIP, Fred Ward, a great character actor whose big shot at leading man status, Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins, unfortunately flopped, but who kept giving great, lived-in performances for the rest of his career."
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