Categories
Entertainment From The Editors

Verne Troyer, Best Known for his Role as ‘Mini-Me’ in Austin Powers Films Died Aged 49

Verne Troyer, Best Known for his Role as ‘Mini-Me’ in Austin Powers Films Died Aged 49
Verne Troyer, Best Known for his Role as ‘Mini-Me’ in Austin Powers Films Died Aged 49

Hollywood actor Verne Troyer, whose claim to fame was his portrayal of ‘Mini-Me’ in the Austin Powers comedy films, died Saturday in a Los Angeles hospital, his family confirmed in a statement posted on Instagram. He was 49.

“It is with great sadness and incredibly heavy hearts to write that Verne passed away today,” the statement said.

“Verne was an extremely caring individual. He wanted to make everyone smile, be happy, and laugh. Anybody in need, he would help to any extent possible. Verne hoped he made a positive change with the platform he had and worked towards spreading that message every day,” the statement continued.

“He inspired people around the world with his drive, determination, and attitude. On film & television sets, commercial shoots, at comic-cons & personal appearances, to his own YouTube videos, he was there to show everyone what he was capable of doing,” the statement added.

“Even though his stature was small and his parents often wondered if he’d be able to reach up and open doors on his own in his life, he went on to open more doors for himself and others than anyone could have imagined. He also touched more peoples hearts than he will ever know,” the statement shared.

“Verne was also a fighter when it came to his own battles. Over the years he’s struggled and won, struggled and won, struggled and fought some more, but unfortunately this time was too much,” the statement revealed.

“Depression and Suicide are very serious issues. You never know what kind of battle someone is going through inside. Be kind to one another. And always know, it’s never too late to reach out to someone for help,” the statement advised.

“In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a donation in Verne’s name to either of his two favorite charities; The Starkey Hearing Foundation and Best Buddies,” the statement appealed.

View this post on Instagram

It is with great sadness and incredibly heavy hearts to write that Verne passed away today. Verne was an extremely caring individual. He wanted to make everyone smile, be happy, and laugh. Anybody in need, he would help to any extent possible. Verne hoped he made a positive change with the platform he had and worked towards spreading that message everyday. He inspired people around the world with his drive, determination, and attitude. On film & television sets, commercial shoots, at comic-con’s & personal appearances, to his own YouTube videos, he was there to show everyone what he was capable of doing. Even though his stature was small and his parents often wondered if he’d be able to reach up and open doors on his own in his life, he went on to open more doors for himself and others than anyone could have imagined. He also touched more peoples hearts than he will ever know. Verne was also a fighter when it came to his own battles. Over the years he’s struggled and won, struggled and won, struggled and fought some more, but unfortunately this time was too much. During this recent time of adversity he was baptized while surrounded by his family. The family appreciates that they have this time to grieve privately. Depression and Suicide are very serious issues. You never know what kind of battle someone is going through inside. Be kind to one another. And always know, it’s never too late to reach out to someone for help. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a donation in Verne’s name to either of his two favorite charities; The Starkey Hearing Foundation and Best Buddies. Photo by @paulmobleystudio

A post shared by Verne Troyer (@vernetroyer) on

Although the cause of death has not been ascertained yet, as an autopsy report is still awaited, suicide can’t be ruled out, considering his struggle with depression and alcohol dependency over the years.

In fact, as recently as earlier this month, the 81-cm tall actor, who was born with a condition called achondroplasia dwarfism, had to be rushed to hospital after emergency responders went to his North Hollywood home, reportedly, because he was “extremely upset, drunk and suicidal”

By his own admission, the diminutive star had an alcohol problem which he had been battling for sometime on a day to day basis, as is the way it should be done.

“I’ve battled alcohol addiction in the past and while it’s not always been an easy fight, I’m willing to continue my fight day by day,” he said in a statement in April last year.

Born on New Year’s Day in Sturgis, Michigan, to Amish parents, Troyer grew up with his siblings Davon and Deborah on a Centreville farm, spending his early days carrying wood and feeding cows, pigs and other farm animals, before graduating from Centreville High School in 1987.

Reportedly, one of the smallest men on the planet, his dwarfism, as aforementioned, was a congenital disorder, which almost killed him from “cot death” as a baby.

His diminutive stature, however, could never deter him from chasing his dreams.

“All my family is average-sized, apart from me. I didn’t really think about my size until I got older, a few years before high school,” he is believed to have told The Guardian in 2015. “It had never really fazed me that much.”

Troyer made his foray into showbiz as a stunt double of “Baby Bink” in the 1994 comedy film, ‘Baby’s Day Out’ but the world will, actually, remember him for his role as ‘Mini-Me’ – the abridged clone of Mike Myers’ Dr. Evil in two Austin Powers films – ‘Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me’ (1999) and ‘Austin Powers in Goldmember’ (2002).

He also featured as the goblin character Griphook in ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ in 2001 and portrayed the character of Percy in Terry Gilliam’s 2009 fantasy film ‘The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.’

His small-screen appearances include reality television series The Surreal Life in 2005 and Welcome to Sweden, two years later, as well as appearing on the 6th edition of the ‘British Celebrity Big Brother’ in 2009.

“RIP Verne Troyer. Thank you for all the laughs,” tweeted, who else, but the British spy character Austin Powers (read Mike Myers) himself.

Oscar-winning actress Marlee Matlin, who has been deaf since she was just 18 months old, took to Twitter to express her grief on his passing, accompanied by a picture in which she has her arm around the endearing actor.

“So sad to read of the passing of Verne Troyer,” she said, going on to add that Troyer had “a lovely smile with a caring and big heart” and that he had assisted her in raising money “on behalf of @starkeycares for free hearing aids for deaf and hard of hearing people. RIP”

Tommy Lee, the drummer for the famed band Mötley Crüe, said he was going to miss his “lil buddy” as, indeed, the whole world would.

Here’s what the others had to say about his sad demise.

Leave your vote

2 points
Upvote Downvote

Total votes: 2

Upvotes: 2

Upvotes percentage: 100.000000%

Downvotes: 0

Downvotes percentage: 0.000000%

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *