Rooster Teeth‘s Monty Oum has tragically passed away yesterday at the age of 33.
The animator for the production studio, best known for his work on web-based anime series RWBY, died after suffering an allergic reaction during a simple medical procedure. Rooster Teeth, the YouTube studio known for a number of series including the popular Red vs. Blue comedy show set in the Halo universe, chose to not upload any new videos yesterday (February 2nd) in remembrance of Oum.
Oum had produced two series of RWBY, and was working on a third for the company before his passing.
A crowdfunding campaign was set up for Oum prior to his passing when it was revealed he had suffered a “medical emergency,” with proceeds going to help his family with the cost of his care. Though he tragically passed away shortly following the emergency, fans continued to donate money, raising $219,653 (and counting) in 3 days.
Read Rooster Teeth’s statement in full below:
“Our friend, inspiration and co-worker Monty Oum passed away yesterday afternoon at 4:34 PM surrounded by people who loved him very much. Ten days ago Monty suffered a severe allergic reaction during a simple medical procedure that left him in a coma. Although he fought bravely, his body was not able to recover. During his time in the hospital he was well cared for and never in pain at any time.
Monty is survived by his wife Sheena, his father Mony, his brothers Woody, Sey, Chivy and Neat, and his sisters Thea and Theary, as well as a countless number of fans and friends. We were so proud to be a part of his life and we will miss him greatly.
Your generosity during the hours after the public statement on Friday will help his family deal with the costs of his care and his passing. You made an incredible difference during a difficult time and we cannot thank you enough.
As for honoring Monty, we will do that in our own way. In lieu of flowers or gifts, we ask that you simply do something creative. Use your imagination to make the world a better place in any way that you can. If you know Monty like we do, then you know he would certainly be doing that if he were able to.
Monty was 33 years old.
We love you, Monty.”
Monty was an incredibly talented individual and he will be dearly missed by both the YouTube and gaming community.
