Director John Singleton’s family confirmed that he will be taken off of life support after suffering a stroke this month, spokesperson Shannon Barr told USA Today .
Barr released a statement from the family, one announcing the news.
“It is with heavy hearts we announce that our beloved son, father, and friend, John Daniel Singleton will be taken off of life support today. This was an agonizing decision, one that our family made, over a number of days, with the careful counsel of John’s doctors… We are grateful to his fans, friends, and colleagues for the (outpouring) of love and prayers during this incredibly difficult time. We want to thank all the doctors at Cedars Sinai for the impeccable care he received.”
Singleton’s family mentioned in the statement that “like many African Americans,” he “quietly struggled with hypertension.”
In addition, Singleton’s family describes him as a loving and supportive “father, son, brother, and friend” — mentioning that he believes in promoting black culture, old school music, and the “power of film.”
Early on Monday morning, some media outlets released reports that Singleton had passed away. However, his publicist quickly responded, rebuffing the rumors by acknowledging that the director was still in a medically-induced coma.
On April 17, Singleton’s family revealed that he had suffered a stroke. After feeling weakness in his legs on a plane trip back from vacation, he checked into the hospital — and later suffered the stroke while in his room.
“It is with heavy hearts we announce that our beloved son, father and friend, John Daniel Singleton will be taken off of life support today,” his family said in a statement. https://t.co/reGLaCNLAT
— USA TODAY Life (@usatodaylife) April 29, 2019
There has been some confusion over Singleton’s condition throughout his hospitalization, partially due to a family dispute over the director’s affairs.
Taraji P. Henson and Tyrese Gibson went to see Singleton in the hospital, with both actors asking for prayers and sympathy on social media.
The family mentioned Singleton’s devotion to helping and motivating new talent, and how his films came to assist in molding the careers of so many stars — such as Tupac Shakur, Regina King, Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, Ice Cube, Tyrese, and Taraji P. Henson, according to ABC News .
Singleton was the youngest and the first black Best Director nominee, receiving two Oscar nominations for 1991’s Boyz N the Hood , his debut film. He is also known for other theatrical works, such as Poetic Justice , Shaft, Baby Boy, 2 Fast 2 Furious, and Four Brothers.
Singleton had recently acted as creator and executive producer of the FX series Snowfall , and directed the fifth episode of the award-winning mini-series The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story .
Singleton is the father to five children, and has had two marriages. His first marriage was to Tosha Lewis, and his second was to Ghanian actress Akousa Busia.
