Spencer LoFranco, the Canadian actor who portrayed John Gotti Jr. in the 2018 film Gotti, has died at 33.
According to Us Weekly, officials in British Columbia have opened an investigation into his death, though no cause of death has been confirmed.
The news was shared publicly by his brother, Santino LoFranco, who posted a collection of family photos and a message honoring him. In the caption, Santino described his brother as someone who “changed people’s lives” and wrote that he will “always love and miss” him.
The post also confirmed LoFranco’s passing on Tuesday, November 18.
LoFranco launched his acting career in the early 2010s after deciding as a teenager that performing was the path he wanted to follow. In past interviews, he talked about being the kid who leaned into humor and attention long before he understood what acting could be as a profession.
After high school, he enrolled in the New York Film Academy’s conservatory program, where he trained for a year before landing his first major roles.
His debut came in the 2013 indie film At Middleton. He went on to star as James Burn in the 2014 crime drama Jamesy Boy, a part that introduced him to a broader audience.
That same year, LoFranco appeared in Angelina Jolie’s World War II drama Unbroken. Additional credits included Dixieland, King Cobra, and the short film Home.
His most widely recognized performance came in Gotti, where he played the son of the infamous mob boss opposite John Travolta and Kelly Preston. The project marked LoFranco’s last on-screen role.
Throughout his career, LoFranco often spoke about how unexpected his opportunities felt. He once recalled the disbelief he experienced when he learned he would be working on set with Jolie, noting that people didn’t believe him when he first shared the news.
He also mentioned that he sometimes avoided calling himself an actor because the label felt so common in Los Angeles, joking that he would tell strangers he worked in a different field to sidestep assumptions.
While acting was his chosen career, LoFranco told interviews that if life had taken him elsewhere, he would have devoted himself to humanitarian work, particularly helping children in underserved communities.
He also emphasized that he wanted to choose projects carefully, aiming for films grounded in truth and emotional realism.