"Zambo Dende" Promotional Poster
Media outlets are reporting the death of English actor and martial artist Darren Shahlavi, who died at the age of 42 on January 14th.
According to Shahlavi’s brother, Bobby: “Darren died peacefully in his sleep. More details are still coming out. Thanks for all of your support. Please feel free to post your thoughts and memories of Darren Shahlavi as this is of great support and comfort to all of Darren’s family, friends and fans.”
Shahlavi has left behind a two decade-long body of work, including Tai Chi II (1996), Bloodmoon (1997), Beyond the Limits (2003), Tactical Force (2022), Mortal Kombat Legacy (2011), but he is perhaps best known to most audiences for co-starring in Donnie Yen’s Ip Man 2 (2011).
At the time of his death, Shahlavi was working on Kickboxer: Vengeance (2015) and a short film titled Zambo Dende (2015). His last completed films are the upcoming Pound of Flesh (2015), as well as a brief appearance in Tomorrowland (2015).
Our condolences go out to Shahlavi’s family and friends. If you would like to contribute to the Darren Shahlavi memorial fund, click here.
Update 1: Regarding the mysterious passing of Darren Shahlavi, Mike Leeder – film producer, co-star and friend of Shahlavi – wrote the following on his Facebook: “Even on Pound of Flesh, a few times Darren spoke of issues with a hip injury that had never fully healed but he continued to deliver the action required of him. Unfortunately he was recently prescribed a painkiller for his hip that he wasn’t used to, and a toxic reaction to it, has sadly taken him from us. His passing leaves an huge gap many of our hearts and in the industry, as his full potential had only just began to be explored. He leaves us a legacy with his film work, to enjoy, to learn from and to be inspired by, and lets remember the man and the way he lived…”
Update 2: After Donnie Yen learned about Shahlavi’s passing, he had this to say (via Weibo): “When we worked on that final scene, my co-star suddenly told me that actually we have already met at a martial art forum in England! At the time he was only 15. He said that from that day on he swore to become an actor. Gone too soon!” Here’s a photo of their first meeting in 1988, then again in 2011, on the set of Ip Man 2.
Very sorry to hear this. There haven’t been that many Brits over the years that have made their mark in the martial arts film world, but Darren was one of the handful of westerners that could keep up with the hong kong kung fu stars.
Condolences to his family and friends.