Charlbi Dean’s fiancé reacts to actor’s death aged 32 following ‘unexpected sudden illness’

‘I wanted to just post a picture of Charlbi, but it’s a bit hard,’ Luke Volker said

Charlbi Dean’s fiancé Luke Volker thanked people for their kind messages in a video posted to Instagram on Wednesday (31 August).

Black Lightning actor Dean died on Monday (29 August) in New York City of an “unexpected sudden illness”.

In the video, fashion model Volker said: “Hi, everyone. I wanted to just post a picture of Charlbi, but it’s a bit hard.”

The 26-year-old added: “And just wanted to let you know I see all your messages, all the love, and I appreciate it. I really do. It’s just I can’t really reply to them right now. But thank you, guys. I appreciate it. I love you.”

Dean shared news of the couple’s engagement on 8 April on Instagram, sharing a series of photos from the proposal, which, she said, occurred at the same spot in New York where she and Volker shared their first kiss.

While best known for her recurring role as Syonide on the CW’s DC Comics series Black Lightning, Dean most recently starred in director Ruben Ostlund’s forthcoming film Triangle of Sadness – alongside Woody Harrelson and Harris Dickinson – marking her first major movie.

She co-leads the satire as model Yaya, one of the survivors of a sunken cruise ship who becomes stranded on an island.

Slated for a theatrical release on 7 October in the US, Triangle of Sadness has already won the Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Dean made her acting debut in the 2010 South African movie Spud and also appeared in its 2013 sequel.

She later went on to work in the 2010s films Blood in the Water, Don’t Sleep, An Interview with God, and Porthole.

During her career as a model, Dean featured in the South African editions of GQ and Elle.

Additional information regarding her death has not yet been made available.