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‘Law & Order: SVU’ Star Ice-T Mourns Death of His Friend and Film Collaborator in Heartbreaking Post

One of our favorite members of the Law & Order: SVU squad is mourning the loss of a close friend on this Friday afternoon.

Ice-T is the man who plays sergeant Odafin “Fin” Tutuola in the New York City Police Department on Law & Order: SVU. He has played the role for an incredible two decades now. That makes him one of the longest-running characters in television history.

In addition to Ice-T being successful on the television screen, he is also a rapper, a songwriter, and a producer. But on Friday, he was simply a man who is grieving the loss of a close friend. He took to social media to announce that a friend and collaborator of his, Taheim Bryan, was murdered.

“MFs Killed my friend last night,” Ice-T begins his post. “I’m not in a good place behind this.”

The Law & Order: SVU star says that Bryan was a great guy. But not only did they share a personal friendship, but they also worked in film together. The duo released the movie Equal Standard back in 2019 and re-released it again in 2020.

“Taheim was a GOOD dude making Positive moves,” Ice-T continued. “He wrote and we made the film Equal Standard together. He has a wife and a beautiful daughter. Dirty MFs followed him home and Murder him. Pic @the realtaheim. I’m devastated…”

‘Law & Order: SVU’ Star talks About ‘Equal Standard’ Film

The shooting deaths of unarmed Black people have prompted difficult but necessary conversations about policing in America. As a result, Ice-T and his friend Taheim Bryan worked to create Equal Standard. The movie dives headfirst into those all-too-real tensions that exist between law enforcement and members of the Black community.

Back in April, Ice-T and Bryan both sat down with PIX11’s Dan Mannarino to talk about the film and its impact.

“Taheim Bryan came to me with a script that he wrote,” Ice-T explained. “This stuff has been going on since before I was born, you understand? My father marched in the civil rights movement back in the day. I think people are just more aware of it now.”

Speaking of being more aware, the trial surrounding Derek Chauvin and the death of George Floyd prompted national protests. However, Chauvin was found guilty and Ice-T believes that was a good start in changing things.

“The big thing in this guilty verdict was that the cops testified against him,” he continued. “So that’s the blue wall kind of breaking down a little bit. When good cops start to testify against bad cops, that’s the beginning. And this movie has that in there in the storyline.”

And in what would end up being one of his last public interviews before he was killed, Taheim Bryan only had one wish. He wants people to watch Equal Standard and learn to coexist peacefully.

“We all have to coexist with one another. However you feel, we must coexist. We all need each other. I think that Equal Standard will be a project that shows all perspectives. Not just one side, but all.”