Pee-Wee Herman Mourns The Death Of Michael K. Williams, 'I Loved And Cherished Him'

Pee-Wee Herman is mourning the death of his friend, Michael K. Williams, and just broke his silence on the interesting friendship the two had over the years.

The 'Big Top Pee-Wee' star issued a statement on Instagram, telling fans how he misses 'The Wire' star and explained they had been friends since 2008. Apparently, the two actors were close enough, Pee-Wee even sent him Valentine's Day card every year.

Pee-Wee (a.k.a Paul Reubens) posted a photo of the late actor along with a lengthy message about the two actors' friendship.

"I just saw some extremely sad, heartbreaking news. My friend and supremely talented actor Michael K. Williams has died. We met on a film in 2008 and became casual pals. I was excited to meet him having greatly admired his incredible, insightful work in ‘The Wire’. Getting to know him, he was everything I’d hoped he might be—funny, serious, deep, sensitive, and joyful. He was absolutely beautiful inside and out. He loved to dance. And, that insanely gorgeous smile he had," Herman wrote. 

He continued, "We connected a couple of times a year, at Christmastime and on his birthday. I sent him a valentine every year on Valentine’s Day, to make sure he knew I loved and cherished him. I’ll miss you very much, Michael, but will certainly not ever forget you. My deepest condolences to his family and friends. Rest In Peace, sweet, sweet man."

As we reported, the Emmy-nominated actor was found dead inside of his Brooklyn apartment after a reported drug overdose. According to law enforcement, drug paraphernalia was found inside of the home near his body. It was reported, Micahel's nephew found him and called 911, and officers arrived on the scene. According to the New York Post, it was believed to be heroin or fentanyl which caused the fatal overdose.

'The Wire' star was reportedly found face down in the dining room of his luxury apartment on Kent Ave. in New York. What looked like heroin was allegedly found on the kitchen table. Unfortunately, by the time his family member arrived at the home he was "unresponsive" and felt cold.

Friends and fans flooded social media in reaction to the actor's death -- including the creator of 'The Wire' David Simon who wrote, “Too gutted right now to say all that ought to be said, Michael was a fine man and a rare talent and on our journey together he always deserved the best words. And today those words won’t come.”

Edward Norton, who starred with Williams on several projects, said it felt like a "punch in the gut" after learning of the death. He continued, "He had a really rare gift for being fully present in the moment & for conveying the layers under the words. He ran so deep. He was also kind & generously enthusiastic. I’ll be forever grateful that he graced ‘Motherless Brooklyn’ & that I got to share space & time w him. RIP.”

At this point, the medical examiner will be running an autopsy and toxicology reports on the actor to find the official cause of death.

R.I.P.