Legendary Canadian actor Graham Greene has passed away aged 73 after a lengthy health battle. The star’s agent broke the news in a statement to Deadline on Monday, sharing that “he was a great man of morals, ethics and character and will be eternally missed”. He added that Graham was “finally free,” and could join his longtime agent, Susan Smith, “at the gates of heaven”. Best known for his role as Kicking Bird in Dances With Wolves alongside Kevin Costner, Graham was born on the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario, Canada, in 1952.
Back to the beginning
Graham initially worked as a recording engineer until he was encouraged to pursue acting. His first screen role was in The Great Detective in 1979, and he made his film debut four years later in Running Brave. The icon made a splash in Hollywood when he starred in Dances With Wolves as a wise Sioux medicine man, earning him an Oscar nomination in 1991 for Best Supporting Actor.
Graham went on to star in the 1994 film Maverick with Jodie Foster, 1999’s The Green Mile alongside Tom Hanks, and later portrayed Harry Clearwater in the Twilight series. He was a fierce advocate for Indigenous representation in film and TV, and ensured that his culture was accurately represented on screen when he could.
Speaking in an interview for Canada’s Theatre Museum, Graham opened up about working with Kevin on Dances With Wolves and representing First Nations people. “When I first started out in the business, it was a very strange thing where they’d hand you the script where you had to speak the way they thought native people spoke,” he said.
“And in order to get my foot in the door a little further, I did it. I went along with it for a while…You gotta look stoic. Don’t smile…you gotta grunt a lot. I don’t know anybody who behaves like that. Native people have an incredible sense of humor.”
He added: “And that’s what I said to Kevin. I said, you know, the people in this film, in this village, they have an incredible family, incredible relationship, and fun has always been part of that. Fun is 50 percent of how they live and enjoy things. Family is family, no matter what.”
A storied career
© Ron Galella Collection via GettyGraham won a Grammy Award in 2000 for Best Spoken Word Album for Children with Listen to the Storyteller, and went on to nab a Gemini Award, an Independent Spirit Award nomination, and a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame. He also received the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for lifetime artistic achievement in 2025.
© Getty ImagesEver the prolific actor, Graham has an upcoming film in the works titled Ice Fall, co-starring Joel Kinnaman and Danny Huston. He passed away in Toronto and is survived by his wife, Hilary Blackmore, his daughter, Lillie Lazard-Greene, and his grandson, Tarlo.
© Getty Images for Capital ConcertHe received a touching tribute from his Defiance co-star, Anna Hopkins, upon his death, with the actress taking to Instagram to reflect on his legacy. “Dearest Graham Greene. Strongest. Funniest. LEGEND. Rest easy, friend,” she wrote.
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