Kris Kristofferson, country music legend and Blade star, dies aged 88

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Louise Thomas

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Grammy Award-winning country artist and actor Kris Kristofferson has died at the age of 88, his family have confirmed.

The US entertainer, who starred in films including the Blade trilogy and Planet of the Apes, died “peacefully” at his home in Maui on Saturday, surrounded by his family.

“It is with a heavy heart that we share the news our husband/father/grandfather, Kris Kristofferson, passed away peacefully on Saturday, September 28 at home,” Kristofferson’s family said in a statement shared with US outlets.

“We’re all so blessed for our time with him. Thank you for loving him all these many years, and when you see a rainbow, know he’s smiling down at us all.”

Starting in the late 1960s, the Brownsville, Texas native wrote such classics standards as “Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down,” “Help Me Make it Through the Night,” “For the Good Times” and “Me and Bobby McGee.”

Kristofferson was a singer himself, but many of his songs were best known as performed by others, whether Ray Price crooning “For the Good Times” or Janis Joplin belting out “Me and Bobby McGee.”

With his long hair and bell-bottomed slacks and counterculture songs influenced by Bob Dylan, he represented a new breed of country songwriters along with such peers as Willie Nelson, John Prine and Tom T Hall.

He was well respected within the industry, with Nelson himself declaring at an event in 2009: “There’s no better songwriter alive than Kris Kristofferson. Everything he writes is a standard and we’re all just going to have to live with that.”

Kristofferson was the recipient of many awards, including four Grammys. He won Best Country Song in 1971 for “Help Me Make It Through The Night,” and Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group twice with Rita Coolidge, who he was briefly married to, in 1973 and 1975 respectively.

In 2014 he was also awarded Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for his longstanding contributions to the music industry.

He retired from performing and recording in 2021, making only occasional guest appearances on stage.

In a 2006 interview with The Associated Press, Kristofferson revealed he owed his career in large part to fellow legendary singer, Johnny Cash.

“Shaking his hand when I was still in the Army backstage at the Grand Ole Opry was the moment I’d decided I’d come back,” Kristofferson said.

“It was electric. He kind of took me under his wing before he cut any of my songs. He cut my first record that was record of the year. He put me on stage the first time.”

Aside from his wildly successful music career, Kristofferson was also a prolific Hollywood star, appearing on both the big and small screen with other A-list names.

He starred opposite Ellen Burstyn in director Martin Scorsese’s 1974 film “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” Barbra Streisand in the 1976 “A Star Is Born,” and acted alongside Wesley Snipes in Marvel’s “Blade” in 1998. He later reprised his role as Abraham Whistler in later films.

Kristofferson is survived by his wife, Lisa; his eight children, Tracy, Kris Jr., Casey, Jesse, Jody, John, Kelly and Blake; and his seven grandchildren.