NEW YORK ā Jason David Frank, who played the Green Power Ranger Tommy Oliver on the 1990s childrenās series āMighty Morphin Power Rangers,ā has died. He was 49.
Justine Hunt, Frankās manager, said in a statement Sunday that Frank passed away. She did not name the cause of death or say when he died, but asked for āprivacy of his family and friends during this horrible time as we come to terms with the loss of such a wonderful human being.ā
Walter Emmanuel Jones, the original Black Power Ranger who co-starred with Frank in āMighty Morphin Power Rangers,ā wrote on Instagram, that he couldnāt believe it. āMy heart is sad to have lost another member of our special family,ā wrote Jones. Thuy Trang, who played the original Yellow Power Ranger, died in a car accident in 2001 at age 27.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=ātrueā]
āMighty Morphine Power Rangers,ā about five teenagers deputized to save Earth from the evil, debuted on Fox in 1993 and went on to become a pop-culture phenomenon. Early in the first season, Frankās Tommy Oliver was first seen as a villain, brainwashed by the evil Rita Repulsa. But soon after, he was inducted in the group as the Green Ranger and became one of the most popular characters on the show.
Though his role wasnāt intended to be permanent, Frank was later brought back as the White Ranger and the leader of the team. Across spinoff TV series, Frankās Tommy Oliver returned as other rangers, as well, including Red Zeo Ranger, the Red Turbo Ranger and the Black Dino Ranger. He also played him in the films āMighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movieā and āTurbo: A Power Rangers Movie,ā and made a cameo in the 2017 reboot āPower Rangers.ā
A practitioner of martial arts, Frank fought in several mixed martial arts bouts in 2009 and 2010.
TMZ earlier reported that Frankās second wife, Tammie Frank, filed for divorce from him in August. Frank is survived by four children; one from his marriage with Tammie Frank and three from his first marriage to Shawna Frank.