Henke as the orc Dorghu in Bright (2017).
Brad William Henke as Tom Cullen in The Stand (2020).
Brad William Henke (April 10, 1966 - November 29, 2022) was an American actor and former National Football League and Arena Football League player. He is best known for his role as prison guard Desi Piscatella on Orange Is The New Black, for which he won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series in 2016. He has also appeared in Justified (2011), Fury, Bright (2017), The Stand (2020) and Manhunt (2017). He portrayed Tom Cullen in The Stand (2020).
Early life and education[]
Henke was born in Columbus, Nebraska. He attended the University of Arizona and played on the ASU football team ("Wildcats") as a defensive lineman. He passed away in his sleep on November 29, 2022. Cause of death was not released to the public.
Football career[]
Henke was drafted by the New York Giants in the 1989 NFL Draft, but was cut. He was picked up by the Denver Broncos, and he played in Super Bowl XXIV against the San Francisco 49ers. Repeated injuries, which required six ankle surgeries, led to his retirement from professional football in 1994.
Personal life and death[]
Henke was married to actress Katelin Chesna from 2001 to 2008.
In an Instagram post dated May 15, 2021, Henke stated that he had a 90 percent blockage of an artery. In another post dated June 29, 2021, he stated that he had two stents put in his heart, as well as his pancreas and half of his spleen removed to treat a "golf ball sized" tumor.
Henke died in his sleep on November 29, 2022, at the age of 56.