‘Saved By The Bell’ Star Dustin Diamond Dead At 44: Cause Of Death
Sad news for Saved By The Bell fans as Dustin Diamond — best known for his role as Samuel “Screech” Powers — is dead at 44. This news breaks less than an hour after The Daily Mail reported he had just weeks left to live. As fans of the actor suspect, his cause of death is related to his battle with Stage Four Cancer.
Dustin Diamond Dead At 44: Cause Of Death
Speaking to TMZ exclusively, a representative of Dustin Diamond confirms he passed away this morning. According to the representative, his health condition “greatly declined” in the past week.
His family made the difficult decision to remove his breathing machine. They wanted to try to move him to hospice care. Dustin Diamond’s representative confirms his girlfriend was beside him at the time of his passing. Furthermore, the representative has reassured the actor did not suffer when he passed away.
Dustin Diamond’s cause of death was related to his battle with cancer. News of his death comes just a few weeks after he finished his first round of chemo.
When was Dustin Diamond diagnosed with cancer?
As those who have been following his health might recall, it was just three weeks ago that Dustin was diagnosed with stage 4 small cell carcinoma. Three weeks ago, he went to the hospital in Florida. He decided to go to the hospital because he was feeling pain everywhere on his body. Moreover, he just had an overwhelming feeling of being uneasy. Unfortunately, his instincts were right. Medical experts confirmed he had cancer. His treatment began soon after.
Deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Dustin Diamond, a true comedic genius. My sincere condolences to his family and friends. Looking back at our time working together, I will miss those raw, brilliant sparks that only he was able to produce. A pie in your face, my comrade.
— Mark-Paul Gosselaar (@MPG) February 1, 2021
How did this actor rise to fame?
Most know Dustin as Screech from Saved by the Bell. He played the role of the nerdy sidekick of Zack Morris (Mark-Paul Gosselaar). His character battled with getting any form of attention or affection from Lisa Turtle (Lark Voorhies).
The series has had a few spin-offs including Saved by the Bell: The College Years and Saved by the Bell: The New Class. Sadly, the actor was not cast for the reboot of the series being managed by Peacock.
Dustin Diamond, best known as Screech on "Saved By The Bell," has died at the age of 44, after battling stage 4 cancer. #RIP 💙 pic.twitter.com/LSWq27nJeL
— IMDb (@IMDb) February 1, 2021
TMZ reveals they sat down with the actor in January of last year. To discuss why he wasn’t a part of the cast for the reboot. In short, the actor admits he has no idea why they didn’t want him on the cast. He, however, admits he did fight for Screech to be a part of the reboot.
Dustin did have a few other roles on his resume including playing the groom in the music video for “I Do (Cherish You)” by 98 Degrees. He also had a role in two episodes of The Wonder Years.
BREAKING: 'Saved by the Bell' star Dustin Diamond has died at age 44, weeks after he was diagnosed with cancer, his manager says. https://t.co/hxqyHMBLaP pic.twitter.com/rxiNcJ2jgn
— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 1, 2021
He even appeared on a few reality TV shows including Celebrity Boxing 2 and Celebrity Fit Club. Dustin reportedly didn’t make many friends because he was extremely confrontational with the other cast members.
Rest in peace, Dustin Diamond.
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