Chuck Norris, panned for past antigay remarks, dies at 86

Chuck Norris, the martial artist turned action star whose outspoken opposition to LGBTQ+ equality drew years of criticism, has died at 86, his family announced Friday.

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“It is with heavy hearts that our family shares the sudden passing of our beloved Chuck Norris,” his family wrote in a statement posted to Instagram, adding that he died Thursday morning “surrounded by his family” and “at peace.” The family did not disclose a cause of death and asked for privacy.

Norris’s death followed a recent medical emergency. Days earlier, he had been hospitalized in Hawaii after a sudden health scare while on Kauai, according to TMZ, prompting concern among fans.

Related: Chuck Norris Endorses Bigot Extraordinaire Roy Moore for Senate

Related: Chuck Norris Thinks Schools Are Too Gay

Though widely known for his roles in The Delta Force, Missing in Action, and the television series Walker, Texas Ranger, Norris’s later public life became increasingly defined by his political activism, particularly his opposition to LGBTQ+ rights.

Before supporting Donald Trump in 2016, Norris drew backlash in 2012 after arguing that the Boy Scouts of America should not admit gay members, aligning himself with efforts to preserve the group’s exclusionary policies at a moment of rapid cultural change. Five years later, Norris endorsed Roy Moore for U.S. Senate, praising a candidate with a long record of opposing LGBTQ+ rights.

Related: Chuck Norris Says Obama Plotting to Make Boy Scouts Accept Gays

Moore, a former Alabama Supreme Court chief justice, had twice been removed from the bench, including for directing judges to defy the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling legalizing marriage equality. His 2017 campaign collapsed after multiple women accused him of pursuing sexual relationships with them as teenagers while he was in his 30s, including one who said she was 14. Moore denied the allegations but lost the race.

Norris is survived by his wife, Gena O’Kelley, and his children.