Unfortunately, Taylor Wily, notable for Hawaii Five-0, passed away at 56. He recently celebrated his birthday in June, and no one saw it coming that that would be his last time.
Taylor Wily, born Teila Tuli on June 14, 1968, was a multifaceted talent from Laie, Hawaii, with roots in American Samoa.
Highlights
- The family and close friends of Taylor Wily has took social media account to post that the actor and former sumo is no more.
- No underlying health issues has been stated except from knee problems in 1889.
- Neither family, nor friends have revealed underlying health issues for his demise.
Wily career spans acting, sumo wrestling, and mixed martial arts.
He was widely recognized for portraying Kamekona Tupuola in the popular series Hawaii Five-0 and also appeared regularly on Magnum, P.I.
In March 1989, Takamikuni (his Japanese name) achieved his career-high rank of makushita 2 in sumo wrestling.
Despite his promising performance, Takamikuni faced setbacks and could not advance to the sekitori rank.
His career was cut short when he retired from sumo in July 1989 due to persistent knee issues.
Family And Friends Mourns The Loss Of Taylor Willy On Social Media
One of the Facebook users, Karen Chang Bar, wrote that,
it was heartbreaking to hear that Talia Manu-Pati from Tumwater recently lost her cousin, Taylor Wily, along with her cousins Braddah Kesi and Rita Wily-Taito.
Talia had shared years ago that Taylor Wily, known for his recurring role on Hawaii Five-0, was her cousin.
This revelation made the world feel surprisingly small.
When Karen later met Taylor Wily on Oahu, he mentioned that he had attended Shelton High School for a year.
Similarly, Peter M. Lenkov shared a heartfelt message on Instagram alongside a photo of himself with Taylor Wily, expressing his devastation.
Many who saw the post initially assumed Taylor had passed away.
Later, in a video, Peter recalled fond memories, recounting how he was captivated by Taylor from their first audition together.
He reminisced about Taylor’s charm and how he convinced Peter to make him a regular on the show and a part of his life.
Peter described Taylor as family and expressed how much he would miss him daily.
He also mentioned a recent conversation where they laughed about their shared dream job on Hawaii Five-0, emphasizing how fortunate he felt to have experienced that magic alongside Taylor.
Neither Karen nor Peter affirmed the underlying cause behind Taylor Wily’s untimely demise.
Except for Knee problems in 1989, the actor, Taylor Wily, and his close acquaintances hadn’t spoken ill about his health issues.
Additional Information
- After leaving sumo, Taylor Wily transitioned to New Japan Pro Wrestling in September 1990, where he became a trainee in Tatsumi Fujinami’s stable, Dragon Bombers.
- Teila Tuli competed under his birth name in the first bout of UFC 1 in November 1993.
- Credited as Taylor Wily, he played a role in the comedy film Forgetting Sarah Marshall as a hotel worker who befriends the main character, Jason Segel.
