Morgan Freeman’s step-granddaughter was stabbed to death on a Manhattan sidewalk early Sunday morning.
When police arrived at the scene they found E’Dena Hines, 33, unresponsive with stab wounds to her body outside a building in the Washington Heights area of New York City right before 3:00 a.m.
Her ex-boyfriend was standing over her body screaming and the knife was recovered at the scene, reports the New York Post.
Police arrested the man and took him to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital for psychiatric evaluation.
Hines is the granddaughter of Freeman’s first wife Jeanette Adair Bradshaw. She is sometimes referred as Freeman’s goddaughter in addition to his step-granddaughter.
E’Dena hines was pronounced dead at Harlem Hospital shortly after the stabbing. Police have not yet said if the man is facing any charges or if they know what caused him to “snap”.
Morgan Freeman reflected on Hines’ talent and said she would be deeply missed by those who knew and loved her.
According to Hines’ website she was an aspiring actor and writer living in New York City where she studied at New York University’s Graduate Acting program. In addition to being an aspiring actress, she also taught under-served youth in her hometown of Memphis, Tennessee where she moved after she was unable to find acting gigs.
She called New York home again last year after being cast in a indie film. She spoke about how exciting the role was on her blog.
‘My dream has come true and its just beginning. Life can make you want to give up or walk away; sometimes it gives you the strength to appreciate when you do get your happy ending,’ she wrote in a blog post on July 7.
According to her IMDB she also played the receptionist in a Morgan Freeman film called Five Flights Up, a yoga student in the TV series A Minority Report, and a maid in the film Moll of Flanders also starring Morgan Freeman.
Morgan Freeman is currently filming ‘Going in Style’ in New York City. Zach Braff, who helmed the Kickstarter-funded comedy “Wish I Was Here,” will direct from Ted Melfi’s script, with shooting set to begin Aug. 3 in New York City.
According to Variety, the film synposis centers around “three retired men who lose their pensions when the company they’ve worked for their entire lives is sold to a foreign corporation. Desperate for money to survive, they set out to try to rob the very bank that’s withholding their money.”
There are no reports if filming was cancelled or stopped due to the incident.
To apply for an extra role on Morgan Freeman’s new movie ‘Going in Style’, check out the casting call details here.
