©Courtesy of Dances with Wolves
Graham Greene, who received an Oscar nomination for starring in Dances with Wolves, died yesterday, September 1 at the age of 73. The Canadian First Nations actor passed away in a Toronto hospital after a lengthy illness.
“He was a great man of morals, ethics and character and will be eternally missed,” Greene’s agent Michael Greene (no relation) said in a statement to Deadline. “You are finally free. Susan Smith is meeting you at the gates of heaven,” he added, referencing the performer’s longtime agent, who died in 2013. The statement did not specify what kind of illness Greene battled.
The actor was born on June 22, 1952 in Ohsweken, on the Six Nations Reserve. He worked odd jobs before he decided to pursue acting as a career. Greene started his career by appearing in Canadian and English professional theater productions by the 1970s.
The performer made his screen debut in 1979 in an episode of the Canadian drama series The Great Detective. He later went on to appear in his first movie in 1983, with the sports drama, Running Brave. The biopic depicts the life of Billy Mills, a member of South Dakota’s Oglala Sioux tribe. He made headlines for winning a gold medal in a shocking upset at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
Greene’s big breakthrough came when Kevin Costner cast him as Kicking Bird (Ziŋtká Nagwáka), one the main characters in Dances with Wolves. The film follows Costner’s character, Lt. John J. Dunbar, a Civil War soldier who bonds with a Sioux tribe and adapts to their way of life. Greene received a nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Kicking Bird.
The 1990 Western received 12 Academy Award nominations, including one for Greene as Best Supporting Actor. The movie went on to win seven Oscars, including Best Picture.
Dances with Wolves launched Greene’s career as a Hollywood star. He went on to open doors for Indigenous actors in the American entertainment industry by starring in several other high-profile features. Those movies include Maverick with Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster, Die Hard with a Vengeance with Bruce Willis, The Green Mile with Tom Hanks, and The Twilight Saga: New Moon with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. Greene also reunited with Costner when they appeared in Aaron Sorkin’s Molly’s Game alongside Jessica Chastain and Idris Elba.
Greene also helped lead such films as Thunderheart with Val Kilmer and Transamerica opposite Felicity Huffman. The Canadian actor also starred in writer-director Taylor Sheridan’s acclaimed neo-Western crime movie, Wind River, with Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen.
Sheridan subsequently cast Greene in two of his television shows for Paramount+: 1883 and Tulsa King. The actor also appeared in series regular roles on Wolf Lake, Defiance and Marvel’s Echo. He also played recurring roles on Northern Exposure, Lonesome Dove: The Series, Being Erica, Longmire, Goliath and American Gods.
In addition to his Oscar nomination, Greene won a Grammy in 2000 for his work on a children’s spoken word album. He was also a two-time Gemini Award winner. The performer also won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Performance in a Comedy Film this year for his role in Seeds. He received Canada’s Governor General’s Performing Arts Award this year, as well.
One of Greene’s final roles was on FX’s acclaimed dramedy series Reservation Dogs. The show built on his legacy of breaking barriers for Indigenous talent in Hollywood.
Greene finished shooting his final movie before his death. He starred in director Stefan Ruzowitzky’s upcoming thriller Ice Fall opposite Joel Kinnaman. The film is in post production but does not yet have a release date.
In his final hours, Greene tried reaching out to Costner to express his gratitude to the filmmaker who changed his life. However, the two performers were unable to reconnect before Greene’s passing.
The Oscar-nominated actor is survived by his wife of 35 years, Hilary Blackmore. He’s also survived by his daughter Lilly Lazare-Greene and grandson Tarlo.
If you liked this article, please share your comment below.