Late Star Trek actor Anton Yelchin honoured with statue in Hollywood

A statue of actor Anton Yelchin (pictured left, as Pavel Chekov in Star Trek Beyond) was unveiled in the Garden of Legends at the cemetery, near late singer Chris Cornell's memorial. PHOTO: PARAMOUNT PICTURES / UIP

LOS ANGELES - Actor Anton Yelchin was commemorated by his family and co-stars on Sunday with a statue at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles.

His co-stars and directors such as Zoe Saldana, Jennifer Lawrence, J J Abrams, Simon Pegg and Demi Moore were among those present at the unveiling of the statue.

The actor died at the age of 27 in June last year after a freak accident. He was pinned by his own car at his Studio City, California home.

The statue of Yelchin was created by sculptor Nick Marra and special effects make-up artist Greg Nicotero. It was unveiled in the Garden of Legends at the cemetery, near late singer Chris Cornell's memorial.

Saldana, 39, who starred with Yelchin in the Star Trek movie series, read a chapter from The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran. People.com reported her as saying: "Ever since I read that chapter about friendship, that is the one thing I always try to seek in people, and when I find human beings who truly understand the meaning of friendship, I'm moved and inspired."

She described Anton as one of those people: "He was an exceptional friend, whether he knew you for five minutes or knew you his whole life. He was just exceptional."

Yelchin's mother, Irina, spoke about the Anton Yelchin Foundation, created in memory of him for young artists "who face career challenges due to debilitating disease or disability".

She said: "We want to keep Anton's spirit, his legacy, alive for many, many years to come. After Anton left, there are only a couple of things left to do. A foundation, photography book and sculpture. We accomplish two by today. The Anton Yelchin Foundation and the statue at Hollywood Forever, so he would be surrounded by the people he admired and to be in the middle of the city that he loved so much."

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