Actor Michael K. Williams tragically passed away at age 54 in New York earlier this week and the Battlefield company has been mourning the loss. Although many people know Williams for television his work that included The Wire, many gamers will recognize him from his appearance in Battlefield 4. Williams played US Marine Kimble "Irish" Graves in Battlefield 4 and was a fan favorite character within the franchise.
Michael K. Williams will reprise his role in Battlefield 2042 in October, but this time he'll be a playable character. Although Battlefield 2042 takes place roughly 20 years after the events of Battlefield 4, Irish is still kicking and is part of a group known as the No-Pats. The game has no single-player campaign but does have a narrative that will unfold through seasonal content. Irish will be one of the game's playable specialists in multiplayer and Williams will offer his likeness and voice to the character.
Sadly, Williams will not be able to see himself in Battlefield 2042 when it launches due to his untimely passing. The official Battlefield Twitter account posted a touching message following Michael K. Williams' death and the community followed suit. A thread posted on Reddit by AdOld6095 pays tribute to Williams, with plenty of other Battlefield fans expressing their condolences. Gamertag Radio host Danny Peña also shared a clip from his interview with Williams when Battlefield 4 was released showing how the actor was incredibly giving and enthusiastic regarding his role in the shooter.
Williams was expected to play an integral role in the ongoing Battlefield 2042 story. Given it's meant to play out over many months, possibly even years, it's unknown whether or not Williams completed his time on the project. That said, the game is just a month away from release, so it seems likely he would have at least recorded the material for the base game. As of right now, EA has not discussed its plans for how it will move forward with the character of Irish.
Either way, it's certainly sad that Irish's return in Battlefield 2042 will likely be one of the last performances from Michael K. Williams. Hopefully, EA will find a respectful way to continue or wrap up the arc for his character, but it's likely the team will have to shuffle a handful of things around to do so. With a beta for the game expected by the end of the month, there's a chance the developer could talk more about Michael K. Williams and Irish's future in Battlefield 2042 before the end of September.
Battlefield 2042 is scheduled for release on October 22, 2021, for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
Source: Battlefield/Twitter, Danny Peña/Twitter, AdOld6095/Reddit