George Jung, Cocaine Smuggler Johnny Depp Played In 'Blow,' Dead At 78
George Jung, the cocaine smuggler Johnny Depp played in Blow in 2001, has died at age 78.
"R.I.P. #georgejung Passed passed away this morning in his hometown of #weymouth #massachusetts #bostongeorge #the last #outlaw," a statement posted to his Instagram on Wednesday, May 5, read.
Jung's followers took to the comments to express their condolences. "Rip George you were a very interesting man I pray for your family in this tough time," one user commented.
"Real one right there, rip," another said, while a third user wrote: "Rest in peace boston george you were THE man!"
"May the wind always be at your back and the sun upon your face, and the winds of destiny carry you aloft to dance with the stars. 1942-2021," his Twitter account shared.
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Jung's cause of death is unknown, but he had been experiencing liver and kidney failure, TMZ reported. He had been in home hospice care since last weekend and passed away with his girlfriend, Ronda, and his friend Roger by his side. He is said to be cremated.
Jung was known as "Boston George" and was infamous for his part in the Medellin Cartel and for helping Pablo Escobar smuggle cocaine into the United States.
He spent 20 years behind bars for running drugs before he was released in 2014. According to Jung's website, he "was arrested and booked in Sacramento County jail for around a month, for violating his parole. He was arrested while giving a speech in San Diego," in December 2016.
"Since his release George has started a new business. That of entering back into the space where it all began. Cannabis. This time around with the growing population of states that have and are continuing to legalize cannabis, George is working on creating his own line of products for everyone to enjoy. George is an advocate for opiod addiction and is in the process of forming a non for profit organization to do whatever he can to help stop the abuse," the bio read.
Jung was the subject of the book Blow: How a Small-Town Boy Made $100 Million with the Medellin Cocaine Cartel and Lost It All, which inspired the biopic starring Depp and Penélope Cruz.
Depp did not publicly comment on Jung's death, but the pair reportedly kept in touch after the film. In a clip of an upcoming docuseries, obtained by TMZ, Depp called Jung "one of my favorite people instantly."
According to Chris Chesson, who was an executive producer of Boston George: Famous Without the Fortune, they started to work on the five-part series in December 2016, and full production began in July 2017. The crew then filmed with Depp in May 2019.
