With the actor Anton Yelchin having died on 20th June 2016 much has been made of him joining the ‘Club of 27’ – that is those actors but mainly musicians who died at the age of 27 which included Kurt Cobain, Amy Whitehouse, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison – the difference here is that their deaths were arguably self induced by their lifestyles. Yelchin, however, was the victim of a tragic accident where his own jeep crushed him against his gates made even more tragic that it was not until he failed to turn up to a rehearsal that enquiries at his home found him. Utterly tragic for an actor who was highly regarded as being a dedicated and sweet soul by the actors and directors he worked with.
Yelchin was born in Russia on Mar 11th 1989 to parents who were both figure skaters and of the Jewish faith and it was at six months old they fled to the US which has been suggested was due to religious oppression by the state.
He started acting at 9 years old appearing in ’A man is mostly water’ but also in Spielberg’s TV series ‘Taken’ as well as minor roles in other shows including ‘Curb your Enthusiasm’ , ‘Law and Order’& ‘ER’. But it was in films that he really came to the fore appearing in ‘AlphaDog ‘with Bruce Willis and Justin Timberlake. His films were an eclectic mix of art house, independent and huge blockbusters like ‘Terminator:Salvation’ but especially the rebooted Star Trek franchise as Chekov . His most recent film was the thriller ‘Green Room’ where he endures all manner of horrors as he tries to escape from a club run by a white power group yet still retained his essential screen innocence.
He was not married and was dedicated to his work as well as music having formed a band where he played the guitar. Inevitably he has several films awaiting release including this summer’s ‘Star Trek Beyond’.
Tragically it seems that the car that caused his death was a model that had been recalled by the manufacturers. He was an actor who seemed to have a great future ahead of him which has been cut short.
