For years he didn’t give up.
‘This is Us’ star Ron Cephas Jones has died after a long struggle. “The beloved and award-winning actor has passed away at the age of 66 due to a long-standing lung problem,” his rep confirms to “ People“.
Jones is survived by his wife Kim Lesley and their daughter Jasmine (34).
Daughter Jasmine is an actress herself. She is now mourning her father
Ron Cephas Jones has been nominated for an Emmy Award four times, winning it twice for his role as William Hill, who unexpectedly meets his abandoned baby son on the hit series This Is Us. The format was launched in the USA in 2016, and then in Germany in 2017 at ProSieben.
Jones spokesman continued, “Throughout his career, everyone who was lucky enough to know him felt his warmth, beauty, generosity, kindness and heart.”
Cephas as William Hill in the series This is Us
Ron Cephas Jones has had health problems for years. His chronic obstructive pulmonary disease caused him to have a bad cough, shortness of breath, and excessive mucus production. The actor therefore underwent a double lung transplant in 2020 while the series was still being filmed.
Ron then to his fellow actors: “You held me when I was in trouble and you didn’t let me go. You were there for a very difficult part of my life. I am a walking wonder.”
A donor lung CAN be rejected with a not inconsiderable probability – which in the worst case can lead to a transplant failure. Although Ron’s body accepted the lungs, he was hospitalized in Los Angeles for almost two months.
The New York Times told Cephas at the time that he had to relearn the simplest activities. Breathe, eat, walk. Necessary to go back to the set of This is Us. “The idea of not going back to the show is worse than death for me.”
And Ron made it. He returned to the set and was there when the series reached its 2022 finale.