Verne Troyer Passed Away – The Bert Show
Verne Troyer passed away on Saturday at the age of 49. There’s no word on a cause of death yet…but a statement on his social media accounts suggests that it had to do with his battles with depression and alcoholism.
It said, “Over the years [Verne has] struggled and won, struggled and won, struggled and fought some more, but unfortunately this time was too much.
“Depression and suicide are very serious issues. You never know what kind of battle someone is going through inside. Be kind to one another. And always know, it’s never too late to reach out to someone for help.”
The post also said that Verne was recently baptized.
There have been unconfirmed reports that Verne was in the hospital being treated for alcohol poisoning a few weeks before his death, and that he’d threatened to kill himself.
Verne was born with a rare genetic disorder, and only grew to be two-foot-nine. He spent his childhood in Michigan, and his family was Amish.
Of course, he’s most famous for playing ‘Mini-Me’ in two of the three “Austin Powers” movies…but he was in over 50 movies. His first gig was as a stunt double for Baby Bink in the 1994 movie “Baby’s Day Out”.
He also played the banker goblin Griphook in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”, and he appeared in the other Mike Myers movie “The Love Guru”.
He also did some reality TV, including two seasons of “The Surreal Life”, “Celebrity Big Brother” in the U.K., and “Celebrity Wife Swap”, where Verne’s girlfriend switched places with Hines Ward’s wife.
Mike Myers released this statement: “Verne was the consummate professional and a beacon of positivity for those of us who had the honor of working with him. It is a sad day, but I hope he is in a better place. He’ll be greatly missed.”
(You can find more celebrity tributes, here.)