LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Austin Majors, who played Theo Sipowicz on the hit show ‘NYPD Blue’, died of 'fentanyl toxicity' in February, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner. His death was ruled as an accident.
Majors, 27, was staying at a homeless housing facility in Los Angeles when he, as per a source, ingested a fatal amount of the synthetic opioid, TMZ reported. There was no foul play suspected in his death.
What is Austin Majors' official cause of death?
Majors’ family said in a statement said that he was "a loving, artistic, brilliant, and kind human being. Austin took great joy and pride in his acting career. He was an active Eagle Scout and graduated Salutatorian in High School."
"He went on to graduate from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts with a passion for directing and music producing." He went on to win the Young Artists Award for his role in ‘NYPD Blue’.
Meanwhile, the County of Los Angeles medical examiner has deferred the case citing "pending additional investigation."
His performance earned him the 2002 Young Artists Award
The statement issued to multiple outlets including people further wrote, “Austin’s younger sister, Kali, says her fondest memories with Austin were growing up on set with him, volunteering at events with ‘Kids With a Cause’, and backpacking together."
It added, “Austin was the kind of son, brother, grandson, and nephew that made us proud and we will miss him deeply forever.”
According to People, he starred in 48 episodes of the police drama series from 1999 to 2004. His performance earned him the 2002 Young Artists Award for best performance in a television series.
Austin played Theo, the son of Detective Andy Sipowicz, the protagonist of the show portrayed by Dennis Franz.
Other important roles Majors played
In 2003, a scene from the show sparked controversy when Austin’s character saw Charlotte Ross naked in the bathroom before she took a shower.
The scene received a lot of complaints against ABC and The FCC fined them $1.4 million. He was also nominated for Best Performance in a Voice-Over Role for his work on "Treasure Planet" the following year as per TMZ.
Majors also had roles in many other popular TV shows such as 'How I Met Your Mother,' 'ER,' 'According to Jim,' and 'Desperate Housewives.' He acted in movies like 'Dead Silence,' 'The Ant Bully,' and 'Nevada' as well.
He also worked on other projects, including 'An Accidental Christmas,' 'Volare,' and the 2000s hit show 'According to Jim'.
Besides acting, he was a musician under the name Pope! He also supported “numerous charitable organizations” according to his official website.
