Luke Perry, the heartthrob actor who rose to fame on the hit series Beverly Hills 90210 and more recently starred on The CW’s Riverdale, died Monday morning (Mar. 4) at the age of 52 years old.
According to TMZ, Perry was surrounded by his family and close friends as he passed away at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Burbank, California, where he’d been since last Wednesday morning (Feb. 27) after suffering a “massive” stroke while at his home in Sherman Oaks.
When paramedics arrived at his house Wednesday, he was reportedly responsive and talking. However, his condition quickly worsened, forcing doctors to sedate him to help his brain recover from the trauma of stroke. Unfortunately, the damage to his brain was too extensive and he never recovered.
Read more about Perry’s life and career (via TMZ) below:
Born in Mansfield, Ohio … Luke had a prolific acting career on TV and in movies — getting his start in the early ’80s — and became a household name on ‘90210.’ After that, his career exploded. Most recently he’s had a starring role as Archie’s dad on CW’s hit show, “Riverdale.”
He also filmed a role in Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming Charles Manson movie, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.”
On ‘90210,’ Luke starred as high school stud Dylan McKay for 10 seasons. He also had prominent roles on shows like “Another World,” “Oz,” “Jeremiah,” “Windfall,” “John from Cincinnati,” and “Body of Proof.”
A reboot of ‘90210’ was just announced on Wednesday with the bulk of the original cast, but Luke had not signed on to be a regular on the series. We’re told he was down to do a few guest spots, but couldn’t commit to more than that due to his “Riverdale” schedule. Perry’s ‘90210’ costars Shannen Doherty and Ian Ziering posted messages of support for their friend shortly after his hospitalization.
Luke also did a significant amount of voice acting, lending his talent to cartoons like “Biker Mice from Mars,” “Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm,” “The Legend of Calamity Jane,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “Pepper Ann,” “Pound Puppies” and many others.
Perry’s reps said in a statement: “The family appreciates the outpouring of support and prayers that have been extended to Luke from around the world. No further details will be released at this time.”
Riverdale execs decided to shut down the set for today to give the cast and crew the chance to grieve.
The show also released a statement, saying: “Luke was everything you would hope he would be: an incredibly caring, consummate professional with a giant heart, and a true friend to all. A father figure and mentor to the show’s young cast, Luke was incredibly generous, and he infused the set with love and kindness. Our thoughts are with Luke’s family during this most difficult time.”
