Michael Wright, the actor whose portrayal of Eddie King Jr. in Robert Townsend’s The Five Heartbeats became one of the most celebrated performances in Black cinema, has died at the age of 70. His wife, Susan Wright, confirmed the news on the actor’s Instagram page. The cause of death has not been released.
“It is with profound sadness and an unimaginable heaviness in my heart that I share the passing of my beloved husband, Michael Wright,” Susan Wright wrote. “Michael was a husband, a father, a grandfather, loved one, a friend, and an extraordinary artist whose work touched generations. His talent, presence, and contributions to film and television will live on, but to those of us who loved him personally, he was so much more than the roles the world knew him for.”
The family has asked for privacy and requested that unconfirmed information not be shared, noting that additional details about Wright’s life, legacy and plans to honor him will be shared in the coming days.
Born April 30, 1956, in New York City, Wright trained at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute before making his professional debut in 1978. His early screen work in The Wanderers (1979) announced a performer drawn to complex, volatile characters, but it was Robert Altman’s Streamers (1983) that earned him international recognition, winning the Volpi Cup for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival.
He spent much of the mid-1980s on television as resistance fighter Elias Taylor in the science fiction saga V and its sequels, bringing him into living rooms across America. But it was The Five Heartbeats in 1991 that cemented his legacy. As Eddie King Jr., the charismatic and self-destructive lead singer of a soul group whose talent consumes him, Wright delivered a performance that audiences have carried with them for 35 years. The film marks that anniversary this year.
He continued to work steadily across film and television, appearing in Sugar Hill (1994) alongside Wesley Snipes, spending three seasons as inmate Omar White on HBO’s Oz (2001-2003) and later joining the cast of Black Lightning as Lazarus Prime in 2019.
His Five Heartbeats co-star Leon paid tribute on Instagram. “We made history together, we were honored together, you made your mark and for that you will be remembered, my friend,” he wrote.
Michael Wright is survived by his wife Susan, his children Manon Wright, Byron Barr, Brittney Briggs, Brianna Barr and Sir Barr, and his grandchild Yoko.