Craig “muMs” Grant, an actor and poet who starred in HBO’s “Oz”, died. He was 52 years old.
The LABryinth Theater Company, of which he belonged as a member, released a statement on Thursday announcing his death.
“The LAByrinth Theater family is deeply saddened to share the news of Craig ‘muMs’ Grant’s unexpected loss. We will forever miss our friend, brother, LAB member, master of ceremonies, mentor, poet, actor, word giant spoken and fire-breathing teddy bear “, says the statement released on Instagram.
“The presence, the performances and the words of muMs have inspired a generation. Your legacy will live, from the Bronx and beyond. Keep waving the microphone, Schemer!” he concludes.
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Craig ‘muMs’ Grant, also known as muMs the Schemer, died at age 52.
(Getty Images)
Grant was also known as “muMs the Schemer”. The cause of death is still unknown.
A Grant representative did not immediately respond to Fox News’s request for comment. His talent agency, Ellis Talent Group, also announced his death in a statement, calling him a “phenomenal man”.
“We are heartbroken by the loss of one of the most genuine, caring and loving souls we have ever had the pleasure of representing,” the talent agency said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter. “Craig was more than our client, he was our dear friend. We all just lost a phenomenal man.”
Grant is best known for playing the role of Arnold “Poet” Jackson in all six seasons of “Oz”, which ran from 1997 to 2003. The role saw him play a heroin addict and prisoner who recited poetry for inmates.
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Born Craig Grant in New York City, the artist started with a documentary entitled “SlamNation”, in which he and the Nuyorican Poetry Slam Team competed in the 1996 National Poetry Slam, according to Entertainment Weekly.
His poems were also featured on HBO’s “Def Poetry Jam”.
Lee Tergesen, Dean Winters, Tom Fontana, Craig muMs Grant also known as muMs the Schemer, Edie Falco, David Simon, Terry Kinney and Eamonn Walker attend the PaleyFest NY 2017 “Oz” meeting at The Paley Center for Media on October 15 2017 In New York City.
(Roy Rochlin / FilmMagic)
The actor has had several roles in film and television throughout his career. He collaborated with director Spike Lee, having been cast on “BlacKkKlansman”, “Bamboozled” and Lee’s Netflix series “She Gotta Have It”. He starred in “Birdman”, “Side Effects”, by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, and “Good Time”, by the Safdie brothers.
He recently completed filming Steven Soderbergh’s film “No Sudden Move”, also starring Don Cheadle, John Hamm and Benicio del Toro.
On the small screen, he appeared on “Chappelle’s Show”, “The Sopranos”, “Law & Order”, “Nurse Jackie”, “Boston Legal”, “Blue Bloods” and more.
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The stars reacted to Grant’s death on social media on Thursday.
“My brother from OZ, I spent a lot of time with this man. Many incredible stories,” tweeted his “Oz” cast colleague Kirk Acevedo, who played Miguel Alvarez.
Producer Franklin Leonard said Grant was “one of the first poets I saw at Nuyorican during my first summer in New York”.
“This is a deep cut. Damn it,” Leonard reacted.
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“He was a friend, a brother, a mentor, a confidant, a cheerleader, a collaborator and a spiritual guide. There will never be another like him. I am absolutely devastated ”, tweeted the writer Jorge Rivera.