Nelsan Ellis, Of HBO's TRUE BLOOD, Passes Away At The Age Of 39

Nelsan Ellis (image via Instagram)

Variety is reporting that Nelsan Ellis, famous for his role as the out and proud Lafayette Reynolds on HBO's True Blood, has passed away at the age of 39 due to complications from heart failure.

“We were extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Nelsan Ellis,” HBO said in a statement. “Nelsan was a long-time member of the HBO family whose groundbreaking portrayal of Lafayette will be remembered fondly within the overall legacy of  True Blood. Nelsan will be dearly missed by his fans and all of us at HBO.”

Ellis had joined the cast of CBS' Elementary this season. Other prominent roles included The Help, Get On Up, Little Boxes and The Butler.

Ellis graduated from Juilliard with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2004.

Ellis is survived by his son, Breon, as well as seven siblings.

Ellis' work on True Blood was exemplary for many reasons. Up front, "Lafayette" made it clear that although the character was gay, he was not "a victim."

One of my favorite "Lafayette" scenes from True Blood:

RIP Nelsan Ellis who played Lafayette Reynolds on True Blood & gave us this iconic scene pic.twitter.com/AExLxYXIzx

— KUNTYEWEST (@kuntyewest) July 8, 2017

Crushed today by the loss of my friend and castmate Nelsan Ellis. He was a wonderful person, a pioneer, and a one of a kind artist. RIP pic.twitter.com/fvtquhIac7

— Joe Manganiello (@JoeManganiello) July 8, 2017

I don't know if I've ever seen the level of humility and kindness that came with the Magnificent Talent that Nelsan Ellis had. Miss u friend

— Sam Trammell (@SamTrammell) July 8, 2017

Very disturbed and sad that Nelsan Ellis has died. Such a huge talent. Such a wonderful man. The world is a poorer place today...

— Denis O'Hare (@denisohare) July 8, 2017

Just got word that we lost @nelsanellisofficial. My heart breaks for his kids and family. #RIPNelsanEllis. #brillIantactor #trueblood #getonup #thesoloist #thehelp

A post shared by Octavia Spencer (@therealoctaviaspencer) on Jul 8, 2017 at 11:43am PDT

How I Miss TRUE BLOOD :)

Lafayette is no punk… Now tip your waitress..

Posted by Kwame Isidore on Friday, November 21, 2014

How I miss Lafayette and the TRUE BLOOD brood....

"Now, tip your waitress."

Just A Timely Reminder

You did set your clocks BACK an hour, didn't you?

You may remember this sexy actor, Rob Kazinsky, from his Season 6 appearances on HBO's True Blood.

Check out another of his bathroom appearances, this one with True Blood's Ryan Kwanten ("Jason Steakhouse"),

True Blood's "Jason Stackhouse" is a good person (and hot)

Ah, I'm really gonna miss this guy.

I met Ryan Kwanten last year at the opening of Cirque du Soleil's "Michael Jackson ONE."

Hubby Michael and I hung with a while and he couldn't have been nicer or more polite. Sad to see the end of "Jason Stackhouse" but certain Ryan has big things on his horizon.

Ryan Kwanten and Alexander Skarsgård "True Blood" sex scene

SPOILER: Do not hit play if you haven't watched this episode from the final season of TRUE BLOOD on HBO

Very sexy scene between "Jason Stackhouse" and "Eric Northman."

About shooting the scene, Kwanten told TVLine:

'There was word on the street that a scene was coming, and to be honest, Alex and I had been — not necessarily begging to work together — but we’d been pondering the thought, “What if we were ever put in a scene where it was just the two of us? What would happen?” And this is what our illustrious writers came up with.'

He said the scene with Skarsgard took a few hours to film and both were in good spirits throughout.

'I always have a lot of fun, and I think that’s the important thing to remember,' he said. 'We’re just there to have fun and to stay true to the characters. Thinking back to this particular scene, I just remember Alex and I laughing a lot.'

Not sure how long the posted video will last online. Watch while you can :)

(via Gay Star News)

New Trailer: HBO's "True Blood"

The final season of True Blood premieres June 22 at 9PM on HBO.

#TeamAlcide

Teaser: "True Blood" Final Season

Things don't look so good in Bon Temps as it appears the government has left the residents of the small town to fend for themselves and hell breaks loose.

"There's no one left!"

The seventh and final season of "True Blood" debuts on HBO Sunday, June 22nd.

HBO's "True Blood" - Season Seven teaser

The final season of True Blood premieres June 22 at 9PM on HBO.

Reminder - Final season of HBO's "True Blood" coming this summer

Like I really needed a reason to post a picture of Joe Manganiello?

(via Boy Culture)

HBO's True Blood to end Summer 2014

EW reports that HBO has announced it's hit vampire-based series, True Blood, will end its run after seven seasons in 2014.

“True Blood has been nothing short of a defining show for HBO,” said HBO Programming President Michael Lombardo in a statement.

“Alan Ball took the books by Charlaine Harris, assembled a brilliant cast led by the magnificent Anna Paquin in the role of Sookie Stackhouse, and crafted a show that has taken its many devoted fans on an unforgettable journey. Alan passed the baton to Brian Buckner, who led our fantastic writers and crew in crafting a spectacular sixth season, and he will lead us through the seventh and final season of this amazing show. Together with its legions of fans, it will be hard to say goodbye to the residents of Bon Temps, but I look forward to what promises to be a fantastic final chapter of this incredible show.”

The most recent season of True Blood ended in August with an average gross audience of 10.6 million viewers per episode. HBO says it remains one of its most popular series.

The final 10 episodes will air next summer.

TRUE BLOOD - Jason Stackhouse's shave scene with Ben

If you haven't caught this week's True Blood (Season 6, episode 4 - "What Dreams May Come"), you missed the very steamy scene between Ryan Kwanten's "Jason Stackhouse" and new guy on the block "Ben" played by Rob Kazinsky.

If you saw it, enjoy it again here.

If not, I won't spoil the twist at the end.

I do love Ryan's awkward/naive thing he brings to "Jason." I recently met Ryan and he's a cool guy, and yes, a quite a bit smarter...

Broadway's Valarie Pettiford joins hit TV show TRUE BLOOD

Award-winning star of stage and screen, Valarie Pettiford, is joining the cast of HBO’s top-rated Sunday night drama, True Blood, in a recurring role for their sixth season. Her first episode is scheduled to air on July 28, 2013.

“Working on this show has been a delicious experience,” says Valarie. “It has been an absolute joy to work with a cast of this caliber. Everyone has been so lovely – they say it starts at the top, and on True Blood, it really does.”

Valarie has a long list of accolades, including a Tony Award nomination, NAACP Awards nominations and Best Actress honors for the festival short ‘The Response.’ Her resume spans Broadway, national tours (Dancin’, Show Boat), hit sitcoms (Half and Half, House of Payne) and big-budget studio films (Stomp the Yard, Jumping the Broom).

True Blood airs Sunday nights at 9:00 PM on HBO.

Joe Manganiello on the cover of MEN'S HEALTH

Joe Manganiello, leading man and werewolf for the hit series True Blood, shares some tips (and shirtless pics) in the July/August issue of Men's Health Magazine.

In the accompanying article, Joe mentions that he works out twice a day six days a week.

However, that wasn't always the case.  After appearing in 2002's Spiderman, his bad habits at the time (two packs of cigarettes and a bottle of whisky a day) caught up to him and he lost his  home, car and agents.  While kicking those bad habits, he worked as a delivery man and construction worker.

And now we get the demi-god that is Joe Manganiello.

Check magazine stands for your copy of Men's Health to find out how Joe develops those biceps and triceps.

(h/t Queerty)

Joe Manganiello in "Good As Gold"

The uber-sexy and handsome Joe Manganiello stars in this 3 minute "epic heist" for Magnum Ice Cream.

Oh. My. Gawd.

The short film also stars Caroline Correa and features Zac Posen.

HBO: TRUE BLOOD season premiere synopsis released

The new season of TRUE BLOOD begins on June 16 on HBO, and just in anticipation of the season premiere HBO has released a synopsis of the first episode:

SPOILER AHEAD!

“Who Are You, Really?”

In the wake of Bill’s (Stephen Moyer) blood-soaked reincarnation, Sookie (Anna Paquin), Eric (Alexander Skarsgard), Jason (Ryan Kwanten), Jessica (Deborah Ann Woll), Tara (Rutina Wesley), Pam (Kristin Bauer van Straten) and Nora (Lucy Griffiths) flee the Authority compound as Sam (Sam Trammell), Luna (Janina Gavankar) and Emma (Chloe Noelle) dodge swarming guards.

Now packmaster, Alcide (Joe Manganiello) discovers that The Job comes with unsavory side dishes, but other major perks.

In Bon Temps, Andy (Chris Bauer) deals with parenting four newborn human-faerie hybrids.

Meanwhile, Louisiana Governor Truman Burrell (Arliss Howard) vows open season on vampires.

Jessica returns to Compton Place as Jason hitches a ride with an eerie stranger.

Trailer: TRUE BLOOD returns June 16th

Joe Manganiello and company are back June 16th

#ShirtsAreOverrated

True Blood Season 6 - Tease #1

True Blood Season 6 premieres June 16th at 9PM on HBO.

Preview the second half of TRUE BLOOD Season 5 - Comic Con trailer

Preview the second half of True Blood Season 5 in this exclusive trailer revealed at San Diego Comic-Con 2012. Tune in to a new episode every Sunday night at 9PM, only on HBO.

Watch True Blood online at HBO GO® http://itsh.bo/hWfz80. 

Joe Manganiello on cover of Entertainment Weekly

To celebrate the new season of HBO's True Blood, Entertainment Weekly has issued 11 different covers this week featuring photos of the cast. Mine arrived yesterday and yes! — EW knew to send me Joe Manganiello!

Click to enlarge

True Blood - Starts June 10th