Brad Renfro has passed away

[mateo]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 6:55pm

http://www.tmz.com/

TMZ has learned actor Brad Renfro is dead.

The 25-year-old actor was found dead at his Los Angeles home this morning. The cause of death has not been determined, however, Renfro had a history of drug abuse.

Sources tell us Renfro, who had starring roles in "The Client" and "Apt Pupil" had been working valiantly to stay clean, especially since this summer. Renfro had been convicted of several drug offenses, including attempted heroin possession.

Renfro had been filming a movie with Winona Ryder and Billy Bob Thornton. The movie, "The Informers," just wrapped.

Renfro has had a rough time personally since moving from Tennessee to Los Angeles. His parents split, and we're told he did not have real guidance from adults as he tried navigating the treacherous movie industry.

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 6:58pm

This is sad news.

My step Mom nick named me Renfro (after I played Renfield in 'Dracula' so long ago) after him.

[blueroses]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 6:59pm

What a shame.

I loved him in Welcome to the Dollhouse.

[MotorTink]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 6:59pm

oh man! The Client was my first adult level book I ever read and loved it, which always made me have a soft spot for the movie.

He was also very excellent in Sleepers!

[SNLMedia]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:00pm

This is horrible. So young.

I have fond memories of him in "Tom & Huck".

[blueroses]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:01pm

I think I'm confusing him with someone else! But it's still sad. That's really, really young.

[mateo]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:05pm

Brad appears in my favorite movie "Ghost World"



He will be missed.

Updated On: 1/15/08 at 07:05 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:07pm

Tragic. He had a lot of talent and promise, once upon a time.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:11pm

That's a shame.

[romantico]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:19pm

He was great in Larry Clark's BULLY.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:22pm

If only Drew Pinsky could have found room for him on his show.
This is sad news, I always thought he was a natural.

[Cruel_Sandwich]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:35pm

Not cool.

Tom and Huck was awesome.

[Jon]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:37pm

He is sometimes confused with Edward Furlong from Terminator 2 - who also has had drug problems.

[misschung]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 7:39pm

holy crow - that's so sad. I remember him fondly from several movies during my "growing up" years.

[ShbrtAlley44]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 8:12pm

OMG! That is awful.

[DivaBrigader]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 8:56pm

It so often ends this way for young Hollywood and it's always so flippin' tragic. Unlike so many of his contemporaries, he was a genuinely talented actor who made some very good films in his short career and it's so sad that these young folks don't have the support system they need to keep them in check once fans come knocking.

[jaystarr]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 9:13pm

Soo sad.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 9:23pm

Very sad news.

[Andante]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 9:32pm

Just read the news on IMDB, and it breaks my heart. I really enjoyed him in Tom and Huck when I was a kid.

[Icehouse Life]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 9:33pm

This is very sad. It should be a wakeup call to all actors who struggling in their lives with substance problems and having hard times, especially when they happen to be genuinely talented. In face of such a cutthroat system, a support system is greatly needed instead of neglect.

BTW, Welcome To The Dollhouse starred Brandon Sexton III, not Renfro

[cturtle]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 9:54pm

ok, break my heart twice in one week (chris bowman, now brad)

loved loved loved brad and joseph mazzello in THE CURE, one of my very favorite movies.

Updated On: 1/15/08 at 09:54 PM

[Greekmusicalfan]

Posted: 1/15/08 at 10:08pm

That is so tragic ! He was a very talented and good looking young actor ! Such sad news !

May he rest in peace

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 1/16/08 at 6:31am

Okay, I'm gonna be a little cruel here.

It's his own d*mn fault.

How many freaking anti-drug messages do we have to have out there before people get the memo? Face it: no one held a gun to his head and told him to take a little blow for the team. He made the conscious choice -- a lot, from the police reports. If he chooses to be that stupid about his own life, then thank God he's eliminated himself from the gene pool. Yeah, he was cute and sorta/kinda talented (in the sense that I suppose even Britney Spears is "talented"), but cut to the chase, people. He was an idiot. He had everything one could ask for on this earth, and he threw it all away because of drugs.

Yeah, that's real smart.

And spare me the inevitable "You dont know what kind of pressures he was under!" nonsense. Screw that. He's no victim. He's just another pathetic little loser who thought the end of a warm spoon was gonna make his life all hunky-dory.

Sorry, zero sympathy. A year from now, no one will care who he was, because he'll be remembered, if at all, as a curious little footnote, yet another stupid kid that offed himself by using.

You want his life to have some kind of meaning? Remember how he died, and make sure you dont make the same mistake.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 1/16/08 at 8:30am

Is that going to make this easier for you? Good.

Will it change the fact that what I wrote is true? Not one whit.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/16/08 at 8:43am

The only "truth" you've written, SeanMartin, is an opinion.

And a cold-hearted, clueless one at that.