Tommy “Tiny” Lister, perhaps best known for his turn as Deebo in the “Friday” films, passed away on Thursday. He was 62.
According to TMZ, Lister was found unconscious in his Marina Del Rey home on Thursday afternoon. He was pronounced dead on the scene and there is no word as of yet as to the cause of death.
Lister — who stood 6 feet, 5 inches tall — started his career as a wrestler before moving on to films. His early roles included “Beverly Hills Cop II,” “No Holds Barred” and the HBO football series “1st & Ten.”
After his appearance in “No Holds Barred” — which starred Hulk Hogan — he transferred the Zeus character from the film over the wrestling ring. He wrestled against Hogan as part of a tag team match at SummerSlam in 1989, where he was pinned by Hogan.
He got to flex his comedy muscles in his role as Deebo in “Friday” and “Next Friday” and as President Lindberg in “The Fifth Element.”
In addition, Lister had parts in “The Dark Knight,” “Confidence,” “Austin Powers in Goldmember,” “Jackie Brown” and did the voice of Finnick in “Zootopia.”
Tommy was married to Felicia Forbes. They had met in South Africa while Lister was there shooting a movie. They got married in 2003.
