Kevin Smith 1963 - 2002

Kevin Smith, who portrayed Ares, the God of War, in Hercules - The Legendary Journeys and in its spin-off Xena - Warrior Princess died on 16 February 2002. He had been seriously injured in a fall on 6 February shortly after completing shooting of a forthcoming film at a studio in China.

I'm sure I speak for all in extending sympathies to his family and friends at this time.

Although it is for his role as Hercules' immortal brother Ares (as well as his mortal brother Iphicles) that Kevin Smith became known internationally, he was already well known in his native New Zealand as both a stage and as a film actor. It's a measure of his versatility that his diary for 2002 was to have included a martial arts film, an action adventure film with Bruce Willis, and a stage appearance in the musical The Rocky Horror Picture Show, playing Dr. Frank N. Furter.

Information has been slow in coming - it was, for example, almost a week after his accident that the news broke. Whilst some of Kevin Smith's fans have found this frustrating, it's understandable that his, and his family's, privacy should have been respected until the final outcome of his injuries was known.

The following addresses link to news stories about Kevin Smith's untimely death:

• XTRA / MSN
  
  • Kiwi actor Kevin Smith dies (16 February 2002)
• The New Zealand Herald
  • Actor Kevin Smith dies after fall in China (16 February 2002)
  • Fans and colleagues mourn Smith (18 February 2002)
  • Wall of silence frustrates Kevin Smith fans (19 February 2002)
  • Wall of silence frustrates Kevin Smith fans (19 February 2002)
  • Farewell to a friend (by Michael Hurst) (23 February 2002)
  • Showbiz friends invite fans to Smith's farewell (23 February 2002)
  • Friends, family plan Kevin Smith tribute (24 February 2002)
  • Kevin Smith memorial planned for tomorrow (27 February 2002)
  • Friends and fans celebrate life of Kevin Smith (1 March 2002)
• The Auckland Theatre Company.
  
  • Not a news story as such, but it was as a member of this company that Kevin Smith was to have starred in The Rocky Horror Picture Show from November to December 2002. If you enter the site and click through "Miscellaneous" and then "News", you'll find a transcript of an "in memorium" speech delivered at the opening of the company's production of The Vagina Monologues.