Key points
- Graham Greene started career in UK theatre scene
- Award-winning legendary honoured with Order of Canada in 2016
ISLAMABAD: Graham Greene, the Canadian First Nations actor best known for his role in Dances With Wolves, has died at the age of 73, according to his manager.
“It is with deep sadness we announce the peaceful passing of award-winning legendary Canadian actor Graham Greene,” Gerry Jordan said in a statement to the media, which reported that he died of natural causes.
Greene received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Kicking Bird in Kevin Costner’s 1990 western epic.
He was a member of the Oneida Nation, part of the Six Nations Reserve located in southern Ontario.
Before embarking on his acting career, Greene held various jobs, including working as a draftsman, civil technologist, steelworker, and crew member for a rock band, before eventually pursuing theatre in the UK during the 1970s.
Discipline of theatre
In a 2012 interview with the Canadian outlet Playback, Greene credited theatre with shaping his craft, saying, “It helps you build a character. When you get into film, you don’t have that luxury. The discipline of theatre is what I recommend to all actors.”
He also reflected on a pivotal moment in his life, stating in the same interview that marrying his wife, Hilary Blackmore, led to “the best time of my life”.
Greene’s breakout role came in 1990 as Kicking Bird, a Lakota medicine man, in Dances With Wolves, a performance that earned him critical acclaim.
Accolades
He went on to star in Thunderheart (1992) as tribal officer Walter Crow Horse, and portrayed Arlen Bitterbuck, a Native American death row inmate, in the 1999 drama The Green Mile.
His film credits also include Die Hard With A Vengeance (1995), Maverick (1994), The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), and Wind River (2017).
Throughout his distinguished career, Greene earned numerous accolades, including the Earle Grey Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Academy of Canadian Film and Television in 2004.
In 2016, he was appointed to the Order of Canada, the nation’s second-highest civilian honour.
