‘Spartacus’ Star Andy Whitfield Dies

Andy Whitfield, who played Spartacus in the first season of the Starz series Spartacus: Blood and Sand, passed away on Sunday at the age of 39 losing a battle to non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

“On a beautiful sunny Sydney … morning, surrounded by his family, in the arms of his loving wife, our beautiful young warrior Andy Whitfield lost his 18-month battle with lymphoma cancer,” Vashti Whitfield, his wife, said in a statement. — Reuters

Starz CEO Chris Albrecht added,

“We were fortunate to have worked with Andy in ‘Spartacus’ and came to know that the man who played a champion on-screen was also a champion in his own life,” Albrecht said in a statement. “Andy was an inspiration to all of us as he faced this very personal battle with courage, strength and grace.”

Well that sucks. Spartacus was awesome the first season. It brought something new to the table in the form of excessive bloodshed, sex and nudity. The entire series was made better by the fact Andy Whitfield didn’t suck as Spartacus and played the Gladiator-esque role well. Damn you, cancer! I’ll get you for this!