‘Friday’ Actor Anthony Johnson Dead at 55

Stacy M. Brown September 20, 2021

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Anthony Johnson as Ezal in 1995's "Friday"

Anthony “AJ” Johnson, an actor and comedian best known for his role as the affable, thieving drug addict Ezal in the 1995 hit “Friday,” has died. He was 55

Johnson was found unresponsive inside a Los Angeles store earlier this month and was later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital, a family representative told celebrity news website TMZ.

No cause of death has been released.

Born in 1965 in Compton, Calif., Johnson began acting in his early 20s, getting his first big break with a bit role in the 1990 Kid ‘n Play vehicle “House Party.”

He went on to star in “Lethal Weapon 3,” “Menace II Society,” “B*A*P*S,” “House Party 3,” “How to Be a Player,” “I Got the Hook-Up,” “Hot Boyz” and “I Got the Hook-Up 2.”