Oscar-Winning Irish Singer, Songwriter & Actor Glen Hansard Dead At 56

Glen Hansard, the Irish singer, songwriter, and actor best known for starring in the 2007 film Once—for which he co-wrote the Oscar-winning song “Falling Slowly”—has died in a motorcycle crash, The Irish Times reports. He was 56.

“With broken hearts we announce the passing of Glen Hansard in the early hours of this morning,” Hansard’s management company said in a statement. “We are still dealing with the shock of it all, so we kindly ask that the privacy of Glen’s family, colleagues and friends is respected at this difficult time.”

Born in Dublin, Hansard got his start in the Irish indie-rock band The Frames, who released six studio albums, the most recent being 2006’s The Cost. In 1991, Hansard appeared in the Irish comedy-drama The Commitments, all about a ragtag local soul band. (It’s well worth a watch.)

In 2007, Hansard starred opposite Czech-Icelandic singer-songwriter Markéta Irglová in another acclaimed film, Once. Hansard and Irglová wrote the Oscar-winning “Falling Slowly” together and performed as The Swell Season, a duo that released three albums between 2006 and 2026. Once inspired a Broadway adaptation, which won eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

Hansard and Irglová dated for a couple of years but split up in 2009. Hansard went on to marry poet Maire Saaritsa. They had one son.

Fans of Hansard include Billie Eilish, who once covered Irglová’s song “The Hill” from Once. In a recent interview with Written In Music, Hansard spoke with great enthusiasm about the future and talked about his approach to live performances

“I want to maintain the energy, focus and intention at their best during live performances at all times,” he said. “If I get the slightest feeling that we’re losing momentum, I might suddenly switch to a different song halfway through to get everyone’s full attention again (..laughs..). It’s in that balance that we deliver our best performances. At every gig, I want to give the audience everything I’ve got. That’s precisely what makes every performance challenging and special for me too.”