South African actor Charlbi Dean has died at 32 from a reported brief illness.
Dean is the star of the upcoming film Triangle of sadness which won the prestigious Palme d’Or award at the Cannes Film Festival in May. The film, which also stars Woody Harrelson and Harris Dickinson, is set to be released in the US on Oct. 7.
Previously, the Cape Town–born actor played the role of Syonide in Black Lightning, the CW series based on the DC Comics superhero. Her prior film credits also include Porthole, An Interview With God, Don’t Sleep, and Spud.
The nature of Dean’s fatal illness has not yet been made public, and a spokesperson for the up-and-coming actor did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News.
Triangle of Sadness was the highest-profile acting role of Dean’s short career. In an after the film won at Cannes, she lauded the director, Ruben Östlund, saying she would be “forever thankful for you for trusting me to be apart of your genius.”
“Congratulations our family we did it!!!” she wrote. “Can’t believe I had the best year making this during one of the hardest times in my life.”
Dean was engaged to model Luke Volker. Following the award at Cannes, Volker wrote in an Instagram post that he “couldn’t be more proud” of her.