Actor, Comedian Jak Knight Dies at 28

performs onstage at Room 415 Comedy Club during Colossal Clusterfest at Civic Center Plaza
FilmMagic/FilmMagic
Alana Mastrangelo

Stand-Up comedian, actor, and television writer Jak Knight died at the age of 28 on Thursday night in Los Angeles, California. Knight’s family announced his death through an agency representative. His cause of death is reportedly not yet being released at this time.

“Knight’s loved ones ask that their privacy please be respected during this extremely difficult time,” the representative said, according to a report by Yahoo! Entertainment.

The comedian wrote for several shows, including Netflix’s comedy, Big Mouth, and ABC’s Black-ish. Knight later ended up co-creating, executive producing, and starring in the new Peacock series, Bust Down, which debuted in March.

“We are devastated by the passing of Jak Knight,” read a joint statement from Knight’s Bust Down family Peacock and Universal Television. “He was a brilliant comedian, visionary and artist and we were all lucky to experience his greatness. Our hearts are with Jak’s family, friends and community during this heartbreaking time.”

Comedy Central also reacted to Knight’s death, calling him “a hysterical and honest comedian.”

“We will miss him tremendously.”

Music producer, DJ, and rapper Steven Ellison — best known by his stage name Flying Lotus, or FlyLo — called Knight “unapologetically bold and hilarious,” as well as his “[favorite] comedian these days.”

“A phenom,” reacted comedian Eddie Della Siepe. “An incredible talent and more importantly a great guy.”

Knight had reportedly oftentimes toured with his stand-up act across the world, and appeared on a Netflix special, as part of The Comedy Lineup series.

He had also credited veteran comedian Dave Chappelle, as well as the animated Boondocks series, for inspiring him to get into comedy, saying they are “one hundred percent the reasons why I do what I do.”

You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.

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