Nick Cordero's Best Friend Zach Braff Shares Emotional Final Text Message From Him
By TheBlast Staff on July 6, 2020 at 8:42 AM EDT
Gettyimages | Bruce Glikas
There's been an outpouring of support from the acting community following the tragic news that Broadway star Nick Cordero passed away at age 41 on Sunday after battling COVID-19 for over three months. Among those sharing their reaction to Cordero's passing is his best friend Zach Braff. The two worked together on the Broadway hit Bullets Over Broadway, an in his Instagram tribute Braff revealed the last thing his friend ever texted him.
"Nick Cordero passed at 11:40am today with his wife and mother by his side. I have honestly never known a kinder person. But Covid doesn’t care about the purity of your soul, or the goodness in your heart," Braff wrote.
He added, "The last thing he ever texted me was to look out for his wife and one year old son, Elvis. I promise the world they will never want for anything. I feel so incredibly grateful I got to have Nick Cordero enter my life. Rest In Peace. Rest in Power."
Braff's wife, Amanda Kloots, and their one-year-old son Elvis had been staying with Braff during Cordero's hospitalization at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Kloots kept fans constantly updated on Cordero's prognosis throughout his battle and drummed up a groundswell of social media support. Despite having no underlying medical conditions, Cordero was put into a medically induced coma and later had his leg amputated due to blood clots.
In his final days, Kloots revealed that he would need a double lung transplant to survive.
"God has another angel in heaven now. My darling husband passed away this morning. He was surrounded in love by his family, singing and praying as he gently left this earth," Kloots wrote in an Instagram post on Sunday
Kloots added, "I am in disbelief and hurting everywhere. My heart is broken as I cannot imagine our lives without him. Nick was such a bright light. He was everyone’s friend, loved to listen, help and especially talk. He was an incredible actor and musician. He loved his family and loved being a father and husband. Elvis and I will miss him in everything we do, everyday."
Cordero got his breakthrough on the stage in 2014 when he starred as Cheech in Bullets Over Broadway. The performance earned him a Tony nomination for best actor in a musical. He went on to star in the Broadway adaptation of A Bronx Tale and appeared on three episodes of "Blue Bloods" as Victor Lugo.