24's Kiefer Sutherland pays tribute after Annie Wersching passes away

Kiefer Sutherland has paid tribute to his co-star and friend Annie Wersching, who has sadly died of cancer at the age of 45.

The actress played the major role of Renee Walker in seasons 7 and 8 of 24, which Sutherland led. She appeared in a long list of TV shows, including big roles in Bosch and The Vampire Diaries.

"The world lost a light today," Sutherland tweeted. "@Wersching was one of the greatest actors I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with, and my friend. My heart breaks for her young family. May she be remembered for the beautiful person that she was."

24 director Jon Cassar has been sharing multiple photos and memories of Wersching, leading with a tweet that reads: "We lost a beautiful soul today, a friend, a incredible talent, and the best mom and wife. @anniewershing you left your mark and you'll be missed.

"This is my favorite picture of the many I took, from the time we spent together on 24."

Star Trek fans likely know that Wersching appeared in an episode of Enterprise – her first on-screen role – before returning to the franchise 20 years later for Picard season 2 as the Borg Queen.

In the world of video games, she provided the voice and motion capture for the character Tess in The Last of Us, a character who featured heavily in the TV adaptation's second episode.

The Last of Us director Neil Druckmann called her "my silly friend who helped bring Tess to life", while prolific character actor Doug Jones wrote: "A true loss to our Trek family, and to television. May she rest in God's peace."

Dana Delaney, who acted with Wersching in Body of Proof, tweeted: "Just the saddest news about Annie Wersching. She was a beautiful light & a FORCE. When we met, I thought she was a stunt woman, she was so scary good. It turned out she was just a phenomenal woman."

The actress also included a link to a GoFundMe page that has been set up to support her three sons, who are 12, nine and four, respectively.

In the intro to the fundraising page, Ever Carradine, who appeared alongside Wersching on Marvel's Runaways, wrote: "Annie was diagnosed with cancer summer of 2020. She's a private person by nature, and the diagnosis made her even more so.

"She wanted to protect her boys. She wanted to get better so she could continue working. And honestly, she just didn't really want to talk about it. She wanted to live her life, on her terms, and be with her family.

"Annie lived for her family. She loved her work and cherished her friends, but Steve and the boys were her absolute everything... Everyone loved Annie. Everyone. But however much we loved her, she loved her boys more. Let's help take care of them for her."

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