The world is still mourning the shocking loss of Michael K. Williams, who died suddenly last week at the age of 54. The beloved actor had many memorable roles in his impressive career, but many know him first and foremost as Omar Little from David Simon’s The Wire.
The HBO drama remains one of the best works on television in recent memory, and Williams’ death made many remember once again the remarkable work the actor did with that role. There have been several lovely tributes to the late actor in recent days, but none were better than Simon’s tribute to the actor in the New York Times on Sunday.
Simon’s piece detailed their relationship and the weight of Williams’ work, and it also included the reveal that Williams actually reprised the character at a special appearance in New Orelans. As the author and showrunner laid out, another actor in the HBO universe often invited actors to New Orleans to have them perform in front of a live audience. And Williams showed up on “almost no notice” to play the part with ease:
Wendell Pierce, an actor native to New Orleans, would hype the local acts in the guise of his “Treme” character. I asked Mike to fly down, on almost no notice, and intro the Baltimore acts in the persona of Omar Little. He was there at the asking.
For a few hours, I watched him inhabit that character one last time. When it was over, we stood outside the club, and I watched a weight descend as he slipped back into Michael from Flatbush, the gentle, self-effacing and utterly committed professional who never gave a camera the wrong moment, but who somehow never took enough comfort from that great skill, who was always, I came to understand, looking for it to mean more.
“Was that what you wanted?” he asked. “Did that go OK?”
It’s a lovely note that brings much of what made Williams so beloved off screen to the public eye. So many of the stories that were shared in the wake of his death from those that knew him best said his on-screen persona was often so different from what people saw on HBO and in film. And while Simon said he was “ashamed” to ask a favor of Williams, it’s a perfect way to remember the actor by.
(Via New York Times)