Charlbi Dean, a South African model and actress who appeared in the critically acclaimed television series Black Lightning and the film Triangle of Sadness, has passed away at the age of 32.
The Triangle of Sadness, which took home this year’s Palme d’Or at Cannes, featured Dean in a breakthrough role opposite Woody Harrelson.
She played Syonide in Black Lightning, which was based on DC Comics characters.
Dean’s representatives called her hospital death from an unforeseen illness “devastating.”
In Ruben Ostlund’s Triangle of Sadness, which he also wrote and directed, Dean portrayed Yaya, one half of a model couple who were invited on a trip that goes disastrously wrong.
In this razor-sharp social satire, models and the super-wealthy discover their standing threatened by unforeseen circumstances. It’s scheduled for release in October and is anticipated to be nominated for an Oscar in 2023.
Before the movie won the top prize at Cannes in May, she gave the Associated Press the following statement: “I feel like I’ve already won in my case. With the movie, I’m already in Cannes. What a fantastic thing. Anything at this point is just the icing on the cake. “
Born and bred in Cape Town, Dean first gained notoriety as a child model, appearing on the covers of South African GQ and Elle issues before making her acting debut in the 2010 movie Spud, which also starred Troye Sivan and John Cleese and was based on a well-known South African book.
She later had appearances in movies including Don’t Sleep and Porthole, as well as Death Race 3: Inferno and Blood in the Water.
Dean was engaged to model Luke Volker, who posted from Cannes that he “couldn’t be more proud” of her. Dean, who survived a nearly fatal car accident in 2008, was engaged to Volker.