Christian Oliver, who starred in films including 2008′s “Valkyrie” and “Speed Racer,” was killed Thursday in a plane crash in the Caribbean along with his two young daughters. The plane’s owner and pilot, identified as Robert Sachs, reportedly died as well.
Oliver was 51 years old. His daughter Madita was 10 and Annik was 12.
The Royal St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force said in a statement that the accident occurred off the coast of Bequia. Oliver, who was born Christian Klepser in West Germany, was bound for St. Lucia with his kids in a single-engine aircraft that took off from J.F. Mitchell Airport on Bequia.
Locals told The St. Vincent Times on Thursday that the plane made a sputtering noise upon takeoff. Island resident Danroy Joseph likened it to “when a vehicle is struggling — you know, stalling, struggling for power to go up a hill.”
“Moments after taking off, the aircraft experienced difficulties and plummeted into the ocean,” police said in a Facebook statement Thursday. “Fishermen and divers from Paget Farm went to the scene of the incident in their boats to render assistance.”
The St. Vincent and the Grenadines Coast Guard led rescue efforts. All four passengers were retrieved from the plane and ocean but were later pronounced dead. The crash occurred three days after Oliver celebrated New Year’s Eve with a post on Instagram.
“The bodies were transported to St. Vincent on board the Coast Guard vessel and were taken to the Kingstown Mortuary, where post-mortem examinations are expected to be carried out to ascertain the cause of death,” police added in their statement.
“I cried cried, it was our first and last film together, I loved working with him so much … He was so. nice, worked so hard and [was] such a brave actor and a beautiful gentle person,” Bai Ling, Oliver’s co-star in the upcoming film “Forever Hold Your Peace,” wrote on Instagram. She said she last saw Oliver on Dec. 20, as they wrapped up shooting on the film.
Oliver had curated an impressive acting résumé. He starred as a detective for two years on the popular German TV series “Alarm für Cobra 11” before making the leap to Hollywood features.
Oliver not only starred opposite George Clooney and Cate Blanchett in Steven Soderbergh’s “The Good German” (2006), but he also played opposite Tom Cruise in “Valkyrie” (2008) and under the direction of the Wachowskis in “Speed Racer” that same year.
His last major credit was in the 2022 TV movie “English Estate.”
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.