The Walking Dead actress Kelley Mack passed away Saturday at the age of 33, the New York Post reported. In January, Mack was diagnosed with diffuse midline glioma, a cancer of the brain and spinal cord, but lost her battle over the weekend, her family said.
The first indication that anything was wrong with Mack, whose real name is Kelley Klebenow, came in October 2024 when she experienced "persistent lower back pain." By the next month, the problem had become so severe that she headed to the emergency room on the night before Thanksgiving.
Doctors ordered an MRI, which revealed "an abnormal mass" on her spinal cord. A biopsy was done, which led to the diagnosis, but it also left Mack with permanent damage. "Due to the biopsy surgery on my spinal cord, I have lost the use of my right leg and most of my left leg, so I now get around with a walker and a wheelchair," Mack shared in a post to social media.
She continued to document her journey for her followers, and on March 26, Mack told fans that she was "re-learning how to walk" with the use of physical therapy. "Life has also had its ups and downs lately, am I right?" Mack wrote.
Despite Mack's determination to get well, the cancer eventually took its toll on the "Chicago Med" actress, who passed away in her hometown of Cincinnati, Ohio. Her sister shared the sad news in a post on Mack's Instagram on Tuesday.
"It is with indelible sadness that we are announcing the passing of our dear Kelley. Such a bright, fervent light has transitioned to the beyond, where we all eventually must go," Mack's sister, Kathryn, told the actress's thousands of followers.
"Kelley passed peacefully on Saturday evening with her loving mother Kristen and steadfast aunt Karen present. Kelley has already come to many of her loved ones in the form of various butterflies. She will be missed by so many to depths that words cannot express," the post continued.
A Caringbridge site for Mack announced a celebration of life to be held on August 16 in her native Ohio. "She would want you all to know how much she loves you. And as her sister, I want you all to know how brave that tough SOB was, especially when she decided to make the leap to be reunited with God," Kathryn concluded before noting she is "proud of" her sister.
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Mack began her promising career as a child actress, landing roles in various commercials. However, her first major success came in the short film, Elephant Garden. The film was honored at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival, winning the Student Visionary Award.
In 2018, Mack appeared in five episodes of season nine of The Walking Dead as "Addy," who was one of the residents of Hilltop Colony. "I was only supposed to be in 2 episodes originally, so I was grateful to have been able to work on five of them and hadn’t anticipated that I’d stay on the show for too long," Mack said of her stint on the horror series.
According to her profile on IMDb, the actress also landed a role in an episode of 9-1-1 in 2019 and Chicago Med in 2022. Mack also had appeared in the films Delicate Arch and Mr. Manhattan in 2024 and played "Ricky" in this year's Universal flick, which was released in June.
Unfortunately, it would turn out to be her last film. Aside from her sister, Mack leaves behind parents, Kristen and Lindsay Klebow, brother Parker, and grandparents Lois and Larry Klebenow.
Cancer is a terrible disease that can strike at any time and take out even the toughest among us. Mack had a promising career and, by all indications, a full life. Cancer robbed her of both, and she will be deeply missed by those who loved her.
