Actor Ángel Salazar, who played Al Pacino’s soldier Chi Chi in the 1983 crime film Scarface, has died at the age of 68.
The actor’s rep and confidante Ann Wingsong told TMZ Sunday that Salazar, who had dealt heart problems, died while he was sleeping at the home of a friend.
Wingsong told the outlet that a friend checked on Salazar and found him lifeless in the bed. Wingsong’s cause of death was not immediately released, according to the outlet.
Salazar played a criminal associate of Pacino’s drug kingpin Tony Montana in the motion picture, which also starred Michelle Pfeiffer, Steven Bauer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio and F. Murray Abraham, as well as late actors Paul Shenar and Robert Loggia.
Salazar had appeared in movies such as 1982’s A Stranger Is Watching, 1980’s Where the Buffalo Roam, 1979’s Walk Proud and 1979’s Boulevard Nights prior to his career-defining role in the Brian De Palma motion picture.
Actor Ángel Salazar, who played Al Pacino’s soldier Chi Chi in the 1983 crime film Scarface, has died at the age of 68. Pictured last year in New Jersey
Salazar’s character Chi Chi was pictured next to Pacino’s Tony Montana in the 1983 crime film during a scene in which the crime boss was caught laundering money
In the storyline of the movie, Chi Chi came to Montana’s aid after he was attacked with a chainsaw amid a drug deal gone sour.
Chi Chi was also seated next to Montana during a scene in which the crime boss was caught laundering money.
The Chi Chi character dies during the movie’s famous final showdown, as he was shot in the back amid an attack from a group of attackers from Scarface rival Alejandro Sosa.
Other prominent films Salazar was featured in included 1985’s Sylvester; 1990’s Maniac Cop 2; and 1988’s Punchline with Tom Hanks; 1988’s Hot to Trot; and the 1993 movie Carlito’s Way, a reunion with both De Palma and Pacino.
He also made a number of appearances on TV shows such as On Our Own, The New $treetz Seriez, Jersey Mafia Chronicles and In Living Color.
Salazar also had a background in standup comedy, as he starred in multiple specials for HBO and appeared on the series Last Comic Standing.