Jason David Frank, the martial artist and actor best known for playing Tommy Oliver throughout the Power Rangers series, has passed away at the age of 49.
Over the past 24 hours, several unconfirmed reports and rumours emerged suggesting that Jason David Frank had passed away. In the last hour, those reports have been confirmed by TMZ, who was contacted by a representative for Frank.
The statement from the representative reads, "Unfortunately, it is true. Please respect the privacy of his family and friends during this horrible time as we come to terms with the loss of such a wonderful human being. He loved his family, friends and fans very much. He will truly be missed."
Jason David Frank made his debut as Tommy Oliver during the first season of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Tommy Oliver started out as the Green Ranger, an antihero of sorts who later joined the team and became the most beloved Ranger the whole franchise has seen, eventually becoming the White Ranger towards the end of that iteration of the Power Rangers.
Frank's popularity as Tommy Oliver carried through several other iterations of Power Rangers, including Zeo, Wild Force, Dino Thunder, and more. Frank would most recently return to the role of Tommy Oliver during Power Rangers Megaforce and Ninja Steel. Frank also appeared as Tommy Oliver in Power Rangers media outside the television shows, including a cameo in the 2017 movie.
Most recently, Frank had kickstarted his own feature-length martial arts film called Legend of the White Dragon, starring himself and several other notable Power Rangers alumni like Jason Faunt and Ciara Hanna. Filming for Legend of the White Dragon wrapped last year and it's currently in post-production.
Tributes for Frank have started pouring in, both from fans and former Power Rangers. One notable tribute comes from Walter E Jones, who played the Black Ranger on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. In his tribute, Jones said, "RIP Jason David Frank. My heart is sad to have lost another member of our special family".