ACTOR Francis “Frankie” Mossman, known for his roles in Spartacus and The Horizon, “took his own life” after posting a tragic final Instagram post.
The 33-year-old passed away in Sydney, Australia, on Sunday.
Two days before he died, the beloved actor shared a picture of him as a child to Instagram with the caption: “Who knew this boy would endure so much pain”.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, his family said that the beloved actor had “been struggling with the resurfacing of old scars and trauma from high school, which he acknowledged in his last Instagram post to the world was a pain he had endured from a young age.
“The world we face right now is a weight on many shoulders, including those in the arts who have had their livelihoods heavily impacted by Covid lockdowns.”
The family concluded: “We ask everyone to respect our privacy at this time and thank all those who loved and admired Francis for their kind words of love and support.”
Francis’ death was originally confirmed in a GoFundMe page set up by his brothers Laurence and Jeremy in a bid to raise money to transport his body back to New Zealand for his funeral.
“With heavy hearts and much sadness, we learned of Francis’ passing last Saturday 14th August in Sydney, Australia,” the fundraising post reads.
“Francis was an energetic force and much-loved brother and son.
“He was a well-respected member of the acting community and found a supportive and endearing family community in Sydney.
“His smile and energetic presence will be sorely missed by those lucky enough to have known him.”
Francis’ co-star and friend Paul Layton said that the actor had been finding lockdown difficult due to the uncertainty around his career.
He told the Mail: “There seems to be an epidemic of losing people in isolation these days that nobody seems to be talking about.
“The unfortunate thing about Franny, I think, was his good looks. They were the least interesting thing about him because he was so funny and weird and I loved it.
“He was such a beautiful person in every sense of the word.”
Layton penned an emotional tribute to his friend in a Facebook post, sharing pictures of the late star.
“Oh, my boy, my sweetest of friends,” he wrote.
“It makes my heart hurt so much to hear you passed away. This world doesn’t seem as bright without you in it.
“I wish I was there for you more. We would always see each other on the street, all the time, just bump into each other and my life was always better because of it. Sometimes it felt like we found each other in the dark of all this.”
Director Pierre-Nicolas Pansci told Daily Mail Australia how Francis had “been feeling a little off lately”.
“But he covered it by pushing me to be more positive,” he said.
Francis was born in New Zealand where his acting career began on the soap Shortland Street in 2007.
With his success, he moved to Sydney where he landed roles in the series Spartacus.
Francis leaves behind his long-term partner Lachlan, his mother May, his father Reginald, and his two younger brothers.
