Chelsea Handler's Sidekick Chuy Bravo Dies, Comedian Pens Tribute To 'Chelsea Lately' Star

On Dec. 15, Chuy Bravo, Chelsea Handler's longtime TV sidekick, died at the age of 63.

Bravo, who made frequent appearances on Handler's E! show "Chelsea Lately," had been hospitalized on Dec. 14 in Mexico City, Mexico, where he had been visiting family for the past month. According to TMZ, his family members stated that after experiencing stomach pains, he went to an emergency room and died after spending the night at the facility. At this time, his cause of death has not been publicly released.

After immigrating to the U.S. from Mexico when he was 15, Bravo got into the entertainment business. Eventually, he landed roles in movies such as 2005's "The Honeymooners" and 2007's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End." Then, in 2007, he was given the role of Handler's sidekick. He would ultimately appear in over 1,000 episodes of "Chelsea Lately" over the course of seven years.

The comedian spoke out about Bravo's death on Sunday on Instagram. In her post, which can be seen below, she acknowledged that she values the positive impact that he had on the lives of others. "I loved this nugget in a big way, and I took great pleasure in how many people loved him as much as I did and do," she wrote.

View this post on Instagram

I loved this nugget in a big way, and I took great pleasure in how many people loved him as much as I did and do. @chuybravo gave us so much laughter and I’ll never forget the sound of his laughter coming from his office into mine. Or his “business calls” with his “business manager,” or his shoe rack with all his children-sized shoes. I’ll never forget him coming to Christmas with my family one year in the Florida keys, and when my niece who was 5 or 6 at the time—saw him, she ran in the other direction saying she was scared. My sister and I were mortified and were apologizing to Chuy, who told us,”it’s ok, lots of little kids get scared when they see big kids coming their way.” I love you, Chuy!
A post shared by Chelsea Handler (@chelseahandler) on Dec 15, 2019 at 2:51pm PST

On Monday morning, Handler posted a series of subsequent videos to her Instagram story where she called Bravo a "big spark of joy" and thanked everyone for all of their "beautiful, kind messages."

Entertainment Tonight has additionally reported that Bravo's family held a service for him on Sunday in Mexico and that he was cremated.