Richard E. Grant and Joan Washington.Photo: David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty
Richard E. Grantis mourning the death of his wife, Joan Washington.
On Friday, the 64-year-old actor announced the news of his wife’s death in a social media statement. She was 71.
Without revealing her cause of death, Grant shared asweet videoof himself dancing with his love, which ended with the pair hugging in a warm embrace.
“Do not forget us, sweet Monkee-mine,” theStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalkerstar added alongside a set of broken heart emojis.
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Washington, who served as a voice and dialect coach, met Grant back in 1983. Together, the pair share a daughter, Olivia, and a stepson, Tom, from Washington’s previous relationship.
Speaking withThe Independentback in 2011 for a joint interview, Grant explained how he and Washington first met at the Actors' Centre in London.
“She was teaching an accent session with a bunch of actors, and I thought she had the most wonderful voice and huge, sort of monkey eyes. She seemed fairly frenetic,” he told the outlet at the time. “I thought that she was really cute and all that.”
According to herIMDB page, Washington’s career spanned almost 40 years during the time she served in the film industry in her behind-the-scenes role. Over that period, she worked with well-known stars likeAnne HathawayandEmma Stone.
After Washington’s death was made public, various stars who worked with her shared their condolences on social media.
Sharing aphotoof herself with Washington,Jessica Chastaintweeted, “My heart is broken 💔Joan Washington had such a profound impact on me, yes as an artist, but mostly as a woman. I’ve looked toward her. Her strive towards excellence made her the celebrated dialect coach she was.”
Noting that they worked together on films such asThe Debt,Crimson PeakandThe Zookeeper’s Wife, Chastain, 44, continued,writing, “Every day I was excited to go to work and giggle with Joan. She was a barometer of truth with a wicked sense of humor. I loved her very much.”
In another statement,The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferiesstar Jason Watkins called Washington “incomparable.”
“Joan taught me dialects and accents when I trained at @Rada and beyond. I have made my career using accents and dialects,” Watkins, 54,tweeted. “I owe her everything. Such a terrible loss to @RichardEGrant and us all. Rest in Peace.”
source: people.com
