Celebrity
The This Is Us Cast & More Stars Pay Tribute To Ron Cephas Jones
The Emmy-winning actor died at age 66.
Emmy-winning This Is Us actor Ron Cephas Jones has died at age 66, his representative confirmed on Aug. 19. Attributing Jones’ cause of death to a “long-standing pulmonary issue,” manager Dan Spilo added in an emailed statement to the Associated Press, “Throughout the course of his career, his warmth, beauty, generosity, kindness and heart were felt by anyone who had the good fortune of knowing him.”
Jones, who played William “Shakespeare” Hill on This Is Us, previously revealed to The New York Times in 2021 that he privately battled chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and received a double lung transplant at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in 2020. “My whole life has been the stage,” the Tony Award nominee told the outlet at the time, adding, “The idea of not performing again seemed worse to me than death.”
After news of the veteran actor’s death broke, heartfelt tributes quickly began pouring in from his former castmates, particularly from the NBC family drama. His onscreen son, Sterling K. Brown, who played Randall Pearson, memorialized Jones on Instagram, referencing his fan-favorite character’s tragic Season 1 death. “Life imitated art today, and one of the most wonderful people the world has ever seen is no longer with us,” Brown wrote, adding that “the world is a little less bright” without his friend. “Brother, you are loved. And you will be missed. Keep them laughing in the next phase of existence, and I’ll see you when I get there.” In the comments section, other celebrities, including Mahershala Ali, Jay Ellis, Sophia Bush, and Katie Couric, left supportive messages.
Their co-star Mandy Moore, aka Rebecca Pearson, also shared some of her touching memories of Jones. “Getting to know and work with Ron on the wild ride of ‘This Is Us’ was the greatest gift — he was pure magic as a human and an artist…I will treasure all of the moments forever,” she captioned a still of them from the show’s final season. “Even though he wasn’t around set as much as we all wished, he was such an intrinsic part of the fabric of the show, it’s like he was always there. I’ll never forget how special it was to film this particular episode and welcome him back to say a proper goodbye to our TIU family and the whole experience. I am just so sad.”
This Is Us creator Dan Fogelman also added a remembrance on Twitter, noting the “massive loss,” as did the show’s other stars, including Chrissy Metz (Kate Pearson), Chris Sullivan (Toby Damon), Jon Huertas (Miguel Rivas), Susan Kelechi Watson (Beth Clarke Pearson), and Faithe Herman (Annie Pearson). While also sending love to Jones’ surviving daughter, Hamilton’s Jasmine Cephas Jones, Metz thanked the “coolest cat” actor “for brightening every room” he walked into, while Sullivan remembered his “generous and compassionate heart.”
Members of the This Is Us family were hardly the only former co-stars to pay tribute to Jones, with Truth Be Told’s Octavia Spencer and Kate Hudson also sharing love on social media. “This one is hitting very hard,” Spencer wrote. “I learned so much from Ron in every single scene we had together. Whenever I saw his name on the call sheet I would get excited because I knew I’d be getting a year’s worth of technique in that 8 hour day.” As Hudson added in an Instagram story, “We had some wonderful scenes together and I will always remember his generosity.”
Meanwhile, fellow actors Viola Davis, Wendell Pierce, and Mike Colter, who co-starred with Jones in Luke Cage, and others also paid homage to their friend. “Ron Cephas Jones was a man of grace, insight, elegance, talent, wisdom, sophistication, and coolness,” Pierce wrote. “I witnessed his rise from the Nuyorican Poets Café, to Richard III at NY Shakespeare Fest, to the Emmy award winning performance on This Is Us. He was the epitome of soulfulness.”
As 20th Television, which produced This Is Us, summed up in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, “Ron touched millions through his brilliant Emmy-winning work on This Is Us, and his beautiful portrayal of William Hill. He loved everyone he worked with in a deeply profound way, and he made certain that they knew it. His unbelievable talent was matched only by his kindness. He will be missed by all fortunate enough to call him a colleague and friend, and we send our sincere condolences to his family and friends.”
