{"id":553424,"date":"2026-03-20T19:21:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T19:21:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/553424\/"},"modified":"2026-03-20T19:21:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T19:21:16","slug":"chuck-norris-film-star-and-martial-artist-dies-aged-86-from-sudden-illness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/553424\/","title":{"rendered":"Chuck Norris, film star and martial artist, dies aged 86 from sudden illness"},"content":{"rendered":"

Actor and martial artist Chuck Norris, known for his roles in The Way Of The Dragon and Missing In Action, has died after a sudden hospitalisation.<\/p>\n

The Hollywood star was aged 86.<\/p>\n

In a statement, his family said they shared the news of his death with “heavy hearts”.<\/p>\n

“To the world, he was a martial artist, actor, and a symbol of strength,” the family posted on Instagram.<\/p>\n

“To us, he was a devoted husband, a loving father and grandfather, an incredible brother, and the heart of our family.<\/p>\n

“He lived his life with faith, purpose, and an unwavering commitment to the people he loved.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Through his work, discipline, and kindness, he inspired millions around the world and left a lasting impact on so many lives.”<\/p>\n

Norris fell ill and was hospitalised in Hawaii on Thursday for an undisclosed condition.<\/p>\n

\"2018-11-16T035506Z_2072475040_NOCID_RTRMADP_3_NBA-GOLDEN-STATE-WARRIORS-AT-HOUSTON-ROCKETS\"<\/p>\n

Chuck Norris has died at the age of 86.\u00a0 (Reuters: Troy Taormina\u00a0)<\/p>\n

In the statement, the family said it would like to keep the details of his passing private, adding “please know that he was surrounded by his family and was at peace”.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The actor celebrated his 86th birthday this month, marking the event with a video of him boxing on social media.<\/p>\n

The video was accompanied with the caption: “I don’t age. I level up.”<\/p>\n

“Nothing like some playful action on a sunny day to make you feel young,” he added.<\/p>\n

Norris was a karate champion before a film star<\/p>\n

Norris was born Carlos Ray Norris in OKlahoma on March 19, 1940.<\/p>\n

At the age of 12, he moved to California with his family and later joined the US Air Force.<\/p>\n

It was during a deployment to Korea that he started training in martial arts.<\/p>\n

\"Chuck<\/p>\n

Actor Chuck Norris, left, shakes hands with Gunnery Sgt John C Pollack in Iraq in November 2006. (US Marine Corps)<\/p>\n

He went on to become a six-time undefeated World Professional Middleweight Karate champion.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He also founded his own Korean-based American hard style of karate, known sometimes as Chun Kuk Do, which has awarded more than 3,300 Chuck Norris System black belts worldwide.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But in 1962, Norris was honourably discharged from the force.<\/p>\n

He applied to become a police officer but was put on a waitlist.<\/p>\n

That is when the martial arts expert turned to acting, with his debut film The Wrecking Crew in 1968.<\/p>\n

\"Film<\/p>\n

Actors actors Bruce Lee (R) and Chuck Norris during the filming of The Way of the Dragon. (AFP)<\/p>\n

Four years later, his epic fight with the kung-fu superstar Bruce Lee in The Way of The Dragon helped turn\u00a0Norris\u00a0into an icon on big and small screen.<\/p>\n

He went on to act in more than 20 movies, such as Missing in Action, The Delta Force and Sidekicks.<\/p>\n

Norris also made a surprise comedic appearance as a decisive judge in the final match of the 2004 movie Dodgeball.<\/p>\n

In more recent years, Norris has become a viral sensation online, embracing the meme craze.<\/p>\n

\"IMAGE:<\/p>\n

Actor Chuck Norris speaking at a National Rifle Association meeting.\u00a0 (REUTERS\/Chris Keane)<\/p>\n

Dolph Lundgren, who worked with Norris on The Expendables 2, said the star was a “role model”.<\/p>\n

“Chuck Norris is a champ,” he wrote in a tribute on Instagram.<\/p>\n

“Someone who had the respect, humility and strength it takes to be a man.<\/p>\n

“We will miss you, my friend.”<\/p>\n

Sylvester Stallone, another Expendables 2 co-star, remembered Norris as a “great man”.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a great time working with Chuck,” the actor wrote in a tribute.<\/p>\n

“He was All American in every way.”<\/p>\n

Jean-Claude Van Damme said he had always respected his friend Norris.<\/p>\n

“He will never be forgotten,\u201d the martial artist and actor wrote.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Actor Chuck Norris in 2010. (AP Photo\/Tony Gutierrez)<\/p>\n

Norris’ son, Dakota, said he would remember his father for his generosity, kindness, strength and discipline.<\/p>\n

“You lived your life with purpose and with love for all people,” he wrote in a tribute on Instagram.<\/p>\n

“The memories we made, the lessons you taught me and the constant laughs we shared will stay with me for the rest of my life.”<\/p>\n

His granddaughter, Greta Norris, also remembered him as “one of the most special” and an “icon” .<\/p>\n

“You all knew Chuck Norris as the man that counted to infinity twice, the man who got bit by a cobra and the cobra died,” she wrote in her post.<\/p>\n

“I knew him as the old man that would come to grandparents days at school, my soccer games and cheer me on as proud as he could be.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Actor and martial artist Chuck Norris, known for his roles in The Way Of The Dragon and Missing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":553425,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[64,63,134],"class_list":{"0":"post-553424","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-entertainment"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/553424","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=553424"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/553424\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/553425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=553424"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=553424"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=553424"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}