Julián Ortega has died. The Spanish actor known for his role in Netflix‘s global hit series Elite was 41 years old.
According to reports, Ortega died after collapsing on Zahora Beach in Barbate, Spain. Ortega’s death was confirmed by Spain’s National Union of Actors and Actresses via an obituary posted on Monday, August 26th. “From the Unión de Actores y Actrices, we send our most sincere condolences to the actor’s family and friends,” read the statement.
Per local outlets, it was believed that Ortega had initially drowned, but it was later revealed that he reportedly went into cardiac arrest at the shoreline where he collapsed on Sunday, August 25th. Paramedics were called in to help the actor, who was declared dead at the scene after an attempt to revive him.
Ortega featured in six episodes of Elite‘s first season, which premiered in 2018. He played Encargado ‘La Cabaña,’ in English, the translation is the manager of the cabin. Elite‘s eighth and final season dropped on Netflix earlier this summer on July 26th.
In addition to Elite, Ortega had a large resume of roles under his belt including parts in shows like Caronte which streamed on Prime Video, 4 Estrellas, The Countryside, Cable Girls, and Velvet.
When it came to the news of Ortega’s death, Spanish actress Silvia Marsó was quick to mourn, sharing a lengthy social media post regarding Ortega. “Absolute sadness,” she wrote in the caption of a selfie of herself and Ortega. She also called Ortega a “tremendous actor” and described him as both “upright” and “honest” in the touching tribute. See Marsó’s full tribute to Ortega, above.
Born in Madrid, Spain in 1983, Ortega was the son of actress Gloria Muñoz and actor José Antonio Ortega.