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South African actor Presley Chweneyagae, best known for his leading role in the Oscar-winning film Tsotsi, has passed away at the age of 40, his agent confirmed on Tuesday.
Chweneyagae rose to international prominence in 2006 after starring in Tsotsi, a gripping drama set in the crime-ridden streets of Soweto, which won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
“It is with deep sorrow that we announce the untimely death of one of South Africa’s most talented and cherished actors, Presley Chweneyagae,” said the MLASA artists’ agency in a statement on its website. No details were provided regarding the cause or date of his death.
Described as a “powerful and authentic voice in African cinema,” Chweneyagae had a diverse career that spanned stage, television and film.
In Tsotsi, Chweneyagae portrayed a young gangster who undergoes a moral awakening after hijacking a car and discovering a baby in the backseat. The 2005 film was adapted from a novel by renowned South African playwright Athol Fugard, who also passed away earlier this year at the age of 92.
Reflecting on the film’s impact after its Oscar win, Chweneyagae said: “It’s a story about hope, it’s a story about forgiveness, and it also deals with issues we face in South Africa — AIDS, poverty and crime. But at the same time, it could take place anywhere in the world.”
Born in 1984 in the town of Mafikeng in North West Province, Chweneyagae began acting at the age of 10. In addition to Tsotsi, he appeared in the biographical film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013) and played a role in the acclaimed South African TV series The River (2018).
