Grant Imahara, the former co-host of the popular cable Discovery Channel series “MythBusters,” reportedly suffered a brain aneurysm that led to his death, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Imahara died suddenly on Monday night at the age of 49. At the time time of his death, no cause of death was immediately reported.
“We are heartbroken to hear this sad news about Grant. He was an important part of our Discovery family and a really wonderful man. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family,” Discovery said in a statement released to the media.
Imahara was well-known in Hollywood for his work in electronics and animatronics. He lived and worked for years in the Bay Area, where “MythBusters” was filmed. More recently, he served as co-host of Netflix’s “White Rabbit Project.”
On its website, Discovery noted that Imahara dedicated his life to using his skills to make people smile. The network said he was one of the few trained operators for the famed R2-D2 droid from the Star Wars franchise and engineered the Energizer Bunny’s popular rhythmic beat.
On “MythBusters,” Imahara appeared in more than 200 episodes, beginning with Season 3 in 2005 through 2014. He joined the show after an invitation from host Jamie Hyneman and was a part of the Build Team with Kari Byron and Tory Belleci.
Former “MythBusters” co-star Adam Savage said on Twitter, “I’m at a loss. No words. I’ve been part of two big families with Grant Imahara over the last 22 years. Grant was a truly brilliant engineer, artist and performer, but also just such a generous, easygoing, and gentle PERSON. Working with Grant was so much fun. I’ll miss my friend.”
After leaving “MythBusters,” Imahara went on to host “White Rabbit Project” with Byron and Belleci. It’s a series that had the trio investigating topics like jailbreaks, superpower technology, heists, and World War II weapons through scientific experiments and builds. The show ran for one 10-episode season in 2016.
Imahara also competed in Comedy Central’s “BattleBots.”
Before making his way onto TV, Imahara worked for Lucasfilm’s THX division and later joined Industrial Light and Magic. He worked there for nine years and contributed to movies like the three “Star Wars” prequels, “Jurassic Park,” “The Matrix Reloaded,” “The Matrix Revolutions,” “Galaxy Quest” and “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.”
Byron and Belleci both took to social media to pay tribute to Imahara.
“I just cannot believe it. I don’t even know what to say. My heart is broken. Goodbye buddy,” Belleci wrote.
Byron wrote, “We had so many adventures. You taught me so much” alongside a set of other tweets honoring her friend and former colleague.
Heartbroken and in shock tonight. We were just talking on the phone. This isn’t real. pic.twitter.com/8zE2afcwSu
— Kari Byron (@KariByron) July 14, 2020