Richard Roundtree, Shaft Star, Dead At 81

Richard Roundtree’s fans and peers in the industry offered touching tributes to honor the actor’s legacy. Actor Gabrielle Union, who played his daughter in “Being Mary Jane,” tweeted: “Working with Richard Roundtree was a dream. Getting to hang with him & our ‘Being Mary Jane’ family was always a good a** time with the best stories & laughs. He was ALWAYS the coolest man in the room with the BEST vibes & ppl would literally run over to come see him. He was simply the best & we all loved him.” Loni Love also recognized his impact, writing: “He was fabulous as John Shaft at a time when there were few leading Black men in film. He put the sexy and cool in being a detective.”

Roundtree received an outpour of heartfelt messages from fans as well, with one noting: “R.I.P. Richard Roundtree. It sounds dismissive to simply say “He was Shaft”, but man, that’s more than enough. Shaft is the coolest anyone’s ever been on screen.” Another wrote: “Dappered and cool for decades. If there is one thing I’ll remember about Richard Roundtree, it’s that he stayed clean.”

Roundtree is more than just private eye John Shaft, of course. But even though he was forever associated with the role, he seemed to pay no mind. “I constantly deal with being called Shaft,” he told the Kunhardt Film Foundation. “And it never ceases to blow me away with the impact that character had on my life and my fans’ lives.”