Taylor Wily Dies: ‘Hawaii Five-0’ Actor Was 56

Taylor Wily, the sumo wrestler-turned-Hawaii Five-0 actor, died Thursday, June 20, according to local Hawaii TV outlet KITV. He was 56.

Although specifics regarding the death – where, and a cause – were not immediately known, his passing was confirmed by Peter M. Lenkov, executive producer of the Hawaii Five-0 2010-2020 reboot.

Initially posting an Instagram message saying simply, “I am devastated. Heartbroken. I’ll post some detailed feelings later. Just too hard right now,” Lenkov followed up with a lengthier post, addressing Wily directly:

“T, as I told you many times, I fell in love with you at the first audition. You came in with a towel on your head mopping up sweat, and I was smitten. You charmed me into making you a regular… on the show… and in my life. You were family. And I will miss you every day, brother.

“PS: when we spoke last week, we laughed at how right you were from Day 1. Five-0 was our dream job. And I was so lucky we got to share that magic together.”