Frederic Forrest has died.

Frederic Forrest has died

Frederic Forrest has died

The 'Apocalypse Now' actor - who portrayed Jay 'Chef' Hicks in Francis Ford Coppola's 1979 war epic - passed away at his home in Santa Monica on Friday (23.06.23) at the age of 86.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Frederic, who was nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of Sgt. Huston Dyer in 'The Rose', had been ill for a long time, though his cause of death has not been disclosed.

Frederic's co-star in 'The Rose', Bette Midler - who made her movie debut as Mary Rose Foster in the 1979 musical drama - was the first to break the news of her "brilliant" friend's passing.

She tweeted: "The great and beloved Frederic Forrest has died. Thank you to all of his fans and friends for all their support these last few months. He was a remarkable actor, and a brilliant human being, and I was lucky to have him in my life. He was at peace."

Last September, Frederic's friends organised a GoFundMe page to help pay for his ongoing care costs.

The page explained that any contributions helped "maintain Fredric's home care for the past six months by paying caregivers to be with him 8 hours a day, 7 days a week. (sic)"

Frederic missed out on both the Best Supporting Actor Oscar and Golden Globe for 'The Rose' to 'Being There's Melvyn Douglas.

His other appearances included his film debut 'When the Legends Die', and three other collaborations with Coppola, 'The Conversation', 'One From the Heart', and 'Tucker: The Man and His Dream'.

His final big screen appearance came in 'All the King's Men', while Frederic - who was born in Texas on 23 December 1936 - also had TV roles in the likes of '21 Jump Street', 'Lonesome Dove' and 'Larry, Quo Vadis?'.

He is survived by his sister.