Fans of the teen drama series One Tree Hill are mourning the shocking death of 35-year-old actor Paul Teal.
The young star died after a short battle with pancreatic cancer, his bereaved fiancée Emilia Torello told TMZ.
In a heartbreaking post on Instagram, Torello wrote, "The most thoughtful, inspiring, driven, self-disciplined, loving man passed away on Friday, November 15, 2024."
"Paul, you were my soulmate, my soon-to-be-husband, my rock, and my future. You filled my lungs with laughter, my stomach with butterflies, and my heart with love. You were taken too soon, in a battle that you fought bravely without fail.”
Teal died in Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday. He was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer seven months ago, Torello told TMZ.
The actor was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, according to IMDB. He appeared in seven episodes of One Tree Hill as Josh Avery.
The coming-of-age drama ran for nine seasons between 2003 and 2012.
Teal's One Tree Hill co-stars are in shock. In a heartfelt post, Bethany Joy Lenz - who played Haley James on the show - recalled first meeting Teal during a musical production of The Notebook in 2006.
“You couldn’t take your eyes off him," she said. “Later, I was giddy to be directing an episode of One Tree Hill where I’d get to cast a new recurring character, Josh- the sleazy movie star,” Lenz said.
“With his self-effacing sense of humor and willingness to dive fully into any character, Paul was perfect for the part. He was a joy to work with in any environment and so generous," she added.
While mostly known for One Tree Hill, Teal also appeared in The Walking Dead: World Beyond, Outer Banks, American Rust, The Staircase and George & Tammy.
Torello shared with TMZ that Teal had filmed a new series for Starz, The Hunting Wives, during his cancer battle.
“While a part of me died with you, I promise to fight to find joy in life as hard as you fought to live every single day,” Torello added on Instagram.
“The world is lucky to have even had a moment with Paul Teal, and I am the luckiest person in it, because I got to call you mine. I will love you forever.”
