Carl Weathers Dead at 76; Stallone, Schwarzenegger, Sandler and More Costars Pay Tribute

News By TooFab Staff |
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"A true great man ... everybody loved him," said Sandler, as Weathers' colleagues from Star Wars, Happy Gilmore and Predator speak out after the actor died in his sleep.

Tributes are pouring in for beloved actor Carl Weathers after his death at the age of 76.

According to his family, Weathers -- most known for his work as Apollo Creed in the Rocky films -- "died peacefully in his sleep" on Thursday, February 1.

"Carl was an exceptional human being who lived an extraordinary life. Through his contributions to film, television, the arts and sports, he has left an indelible mark and is recognized worldwide and across generations," said his family in a statement. "He was a beloved brother, father, grandfather, partner, and friend."

He is survived by ex-wife Mary Ann and the former couple's two sons, Matthew and Jason.

After starting his career playing football in college and for the Oakland Raiders, he began acting in shows including The Six Million Dollar Man, Starsky & Hutch and Good Times, before landing the role of Creed in the first Rocky film. He'd reprise his role for three sequels, before his character was killed off in Rocky IV.

He'd later appear in Predator and collaborated with Adam Sandler for Happy Gilmore, Little Nicky and Eight Crazy Nights. He also starred on Street Justice and In the Heat of the Night, voiced Combat Carl in Toy Story 4 and, most recently, played Greef Karga on The Mandalorian -- for which he earned an Emmy nomination.

After news of his death broke, many of his former costars -- including Rocky costars Sylvester Stallone and Dolph Lundgren, Happy Gilmore's Sandler and Julie Bowen, Mandalorian star Pedro Pascal and director Robert Rodriguez, as well as Predator alums Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jesse Ventura -- turned to social media to honor their late friend.

"Today is an incredibly sad day for me," said Stallone in a video. "I'm so torn up, I can't even tell you. It's a horrible loss ... he was magic," he added, "I never could have accomplished what we did with Rocky without him."

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