‘Elvis’ Actress Shonka Dukureh, 44, Found Dead
According to a tweet from Nashville police, Shonka Dukureh, who played Big Mama Thornton in Baz Luhrmann’s new film Elvis, was discovered dead in her Nashville apartment on July 21.
According to authorities, the 44-year-old woman was found dead in her bedroom, which she shared with her two young children. Her death, they claimed, is not being investigated for any foul play.
Her body has been taken into custody by the Davidson County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy, which will be made public at a later date. Is there a known cause of death?
When she passed away, many of her followers flocked to Instagram to say, “Rest In Paradise.”
According to IMDb, Dukureh’s only film credit is Elvis. She also appeared in the video for Doja Cat’s song, “Vegas” from the soundtrack of the film.
Released earlier this year, the picture stars Austin Butler and Tom Hanks.
Earlier this week, Dukureh released an interview on Instagram in which she discussed her first major job. As she captioned the video, she wrote: “Gratefulness is where I live cuz my granny, gmama, momma, family modelled and instilled it in me,” “It isn’t a posture of less than or crumbs scraping, but one that acknowledges good things aren’t a guarantee and when we encounter them thankfulness, gratefulness is the least we can express.”
Priscilla Presley’s co-actress Olivia DeJonge told Entertainment Weekly that “a star was essentially born” when Dukureh performed for the cameras. DeJonge claimed to have witnessed the incident “something in her sort of break free. It was just, it was insane to watch.”
“Grateful to not only hear her words, but the beautiful sentiments of all the cast present as well as Baz.” Dukureh wrote in her repost of the clip.