Jessica Jones star Eka Darville’s young son has tragically died following a brief battle with brain cancer.
The Australian actor is best known for his role in the smash hit Marvel series Jessia Jones alongside David Tennant.
Earlier this year, Darville discovered his 10-year-old son, Mana, was battling a rare and aggressive form of the disease called glioneuronal brain cancer.
Tragically, despite undergoing numerous aggressive treatments in a bid to save his life, Darville’s son has sadly passed away.
Darville’s mother Malaika shared the heartbreaking news in a video posted to the GoFundMe page that had been set up in her grandson’s name.
“I still wanted to come together in this prayer because he’s still always gonna be with us and he’s still with us” she said.
“You can imagine the amount of sadness and grief of Eka, Lila and Lila’s parents, his grandparents, myself, his little brothers.
“But at the same time, there’s a lot of joy. There’s a lot of peace. There’s a lot of stillness in the house after such a long struggle for 463 days since the whole ordeal began. And now he’s free. Now he’s dancing in the light.
“We all see it, we feel it and I know that many of you, like myself, loved Mana eternally,” added the grandmother.”
Darville’s life was turned upside down when his son collapsed on a beach in July 2022.
Mana continued to suffer devastating seizures, only to be rushed to hospital in January of this year where it was determined that he was suffering from brain cancer.
Following an operation to remove as much of the tumour as possible, Mana’s family left Australia in a bid to find a cure for the youngster overseas.
After discovering several possible lifesaving treatments in the US, the family set a fundraising goal of $600,000, which they managed to raise in mere months.
Last week, the family shared on Instagram that Mana was “still breathing” and that they were praying for a “miracle”.
“Mana is still breathing so we have hope,” wrote the family on Instagram. “We know miracles are possible because we see it everyday with our little man. Thank you to everyone for sharing your daily #manamoment with us.”
Aussie actor Teresa Palmer shared her condolences in response to the tragic news.
She wrote: “Sending immense love your way, friends.”
Darville has appeared in numerous shows throughout his career including The Vampire Diaries, Empire and Terra Nova. Fans of the star will next see him in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes when it hits cinemas in 2024.