Oz Actor, Granville Adams Dies After Long Battle With Cancer

Granville Adams, best known for his role as Zahir Arif on HBO’s Oz, has passed away following a long battle with cancer. The actor was 58.

The news was posted by Oz showrunner and executive producer Tom Fontana, who shared a loving tribute to the actor on Instagram. “Goodnight, sweet prince/and flights of angels sing thee to they rest,” he wrote.

Adams starred in all six seasons of the gritty prison drama, appearing in a total of 48 episodes. After his character was jailed for possessing stolen goods, Arif reformed himself through Islam, and was well known for being one of Oswald State Correctional Facility’s calmer inmates.

A couple of Adams’ Oz costars also chimed in with kind words, including Dean Winters who wrote:

“I first met Granny in 1992 and I immediately drank the Kool Aid. His smile was infectious, his chuckle was intoxicating. He never, ever spoke ill of anyone, and I defy anyone who knew him to say anything negative about this man.

Granville was beloved, period. He may as well have had people throwing rose petals at his feet while he walked down the street. A humble, beautiful soul who just elevated the afterlife to a whole new level. You will be missed my friend. You are my brother and I’m a better human being for knowing you.”

Kirk Acevedo also tweeted a tribute writing, “I lost my brotha today after a long battle with cancer. I don’t do well with loss because I’m unfamiliar with it. Yo Granny, we’ll be chopping it up on the other side one day. Until then… Rest easy my friend.”

The actor’s other credits include an 11-episode stint on NBC’s Homicide: Life on the Street, and the movie Empire. In 2000, he reprised his role of Officer Jeff Westby in Homicide: The Movie.