Actress Mira Furlan, who played Ambassador Delenn de Minbari in the sci-fi drama series Babylon 5, passed away on January 20. She was 65 years old.
Furlan’s death was announced by Furlan’s Twitter account and confirmed by Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski, who paid tribute to the talented actress.
“It is a night of great sadness, as our friend and comrade had traveled the path where we cannot reach it,” he wrote. “Mira was a good and kind woman, an incredibly talented performer and a friend of everyone in the Babylon 5 cast and crew, and we are all devastated by the news.
Born in the Croatian capital, Zagreb, in 1955, Furlan was a well-known and award-winning theater, film and TV actress in the former Yugoslavia. She starred in several plays, TV series and films, including the 1985 Palm d’Or winner of Emir Kusturica and an Oscar nominee When the father was traveling on business.
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Furlan emigrated to the United States with her husband in November 1991, during the early stages of Croatian War of Independence, one of several conflicts that led to the dissolution of the Yugoslav federation. According to Straczynski, Furlan had been receiving death threats for his continuous trip across the disintegrating country with a theater troupe.
Upon his arrival in the USA, Furlan quickly landed the role of Ambassador Delenn in Babylon 5, which lasted five seasons.
After the end of the Yugoslav Wars in 2001, Furlan began to travel back and forth between Hollywood and Croatia, working on film and TV projects in both countries. In the United States, she played Danielle Rousseau on ABC Lost. His series credits also include Just add magic and Spider-Man: the animated series.
No cause of death was revealed by Straczynski wrote: “We have known for some time that Mira’s health is getting worse … and we are all dreading that day.”
Furlan’s Twitter account shared what appears to be her recent thoughts on life coming to an end. Fittingly, while looking at the stars “where will I go soon”, Furlan evoked his famous Babylon 5 character. “‘We are all stars’, I suddenly remember Delenn’s speech in Joe’s script,” she said.
Furlan leaves her husband, Goran Gajic and his son.
It is a night of great sadness, as our friend and comrade had come down the road where we cannot reach it. But, as with all things, we will achieve it over time, and I believe it will have many stories to tell us and many new roles to share with the universe. pic.twitter.com/HyQlqyC19v
– J. Michael Straczynski (@straczynski) January 22, 2021
– Mira Furlan (@FurlanMira) January 22, 2021