Leonard Nimoy dies aged 83

Leonard Nimoy has passed away.

The Star Trek actor was hospitalised earlier this week with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

On Friday, Leonard’s wife Susan Bay Nimoy confirmed that the actor had passed away at his Bel Air home in Los Angeles.

Leonard was 83.

He revealed last year that he was suffering from the lung condition and blamed it on years of smoking, which he quit more than 30 years ago.

“I quit smoking 30 yrs ago. Not soon enough. I have COPD. Grandpa says, quit now!! LLAP (Live Long and Prosper),” he wrote on Twitter at the time.

Leonard was most famous for playing Mr. Spock, the first officer of the Starship Enterprise, in the original Star Trek television series and films.

He reprised his role for the latest instalment in the franchise, Star Trek Into Darkness, in 2013.

While Leonard delighted fans with his cameo performance in the film, he had earlier turned down the chance to appear in an earlier movie – Star Trek: Generations.

Explaining his decision not to star in the film, Leonard told StarTrek.com: “This cameo in Star Trek Into Darkness was about the Spock character. The cameo in Generations was not about the Spock character. It was just somebody named Spock saying some lines that had nothing to do with Spock. It wasn’t about the character at all. It was about something else. So I just let it go. There was no need for me to be there.”

Leonard also said that he wouldn’t have ruled out reprising his most famous role one more time. He added that if director J.J Abrams was on board again, he would also be up for the challenge.

“I think J.J. has done a great thing for Star Trek,” he said. “I’m very grateful to him. We all owe him a lot. When someone comes along like he has done and picks it up and elevates it, we should be grateful. So when J.J. calls me, I take the call.”