On the sets of Marvel Studios blockbuster films, Taraja Ramsess acted and performed stunts alongside big-screen superheroes. But at home, and away from the spotlight, the “Black Panther” and “Avengers: Endgame” stuntman had always been a star in his children’s eyes.
Kisasi Ramsess, 10, was routinely found running around the family’s Atlanta home wearing an Iron Man outfit he constructed with feet of tape and holes cut out of cardboard, Taraja’s mother, Akili Ramsess, said. That was until “Black Panther” came out, and then the shouts of “Wakanda Forever!” took over at school and home.
Taraja’s only son worshipped and bragged about his father, who took his kids to his movie sets whenever possible. They were inseparable.
“His dad was a superhero as far as he was concerned,” Akili Ramsess told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “His dad could do anything.”
Credit: Akili Ramsess
Credit: Akili Ramsess
On Halloween night, Taraja, 41, and two of his children were killed when their pickup truck collided with a broken down tractor-trailer on the I-285 exit ramp to I-20 in DeKalb County, police said. The seven people in the car had been heading home from trick-or-treating, Akili said.
Taraja’s 13-year-old daughter Sundari and infant daughter Fujibo died in the crash, while Kisasi was critically injured, police said. According to Akili, Taraja’s oldest daughter Kali, 15, survived along with his ex-wife Selena Scott-Ramsess and her 3-year-old daughter Shazia, whom Taraja considered his child. She remains in the hospital.
Akili said Kali told her the tractor-trailer didn’t have on any of its lights. Police did not report any injuries to the big-rig driver and no charges have been filed, authorities said Tuesday.
Akili had planned Sunday’s funeral at Atlanta Masjid to honor her son, a practicing Muslim, and two grandchildren. But things changed just hours earlier when Kisasi died from his injuries.
“It was heartbreaking,” she said after taking a deep breath. “We had real hope that maybe there was some chance of him surviving, but his injuries were so extensive. We felt it was good that he should be buried with the rest of his family.”
At the moving service, Akili read all of the obituaries. Their bodies were then taken to an Islamic cemetery on Jonesboro Road, where they were lowered into the ground one by one. Fujibo, the infant named after the Japanese flower, was placed on her dad’s chest with a burial shroud covering them both.
Credit: Akili Ramsess
Credit: Akili Ramsess
Less than 10 weeks earlier, Taraja had been fearful of missing his daughter’s birth because of a stunt-related job for Marvel Universe Live! in Saudi Arabia, a godsend opportunity for the family amid the film industry strike. After the touring live-action arena show was postponed, he made it to the birth on Sept. 18 and held her tight with a bright smile — then was on a plane for the Middle East that night.
On Oct. 25, he returned home and was able to snuggle a few more times with his baby before the fatal wreck six days later.
While he often had to travel because of his work, the thriving Atlanta film industry enabled Taraja to stay close to home about 90% of the time. Akili said her son picked up his children from school and saw them every day when he was in town.
He started off in video production before getting into the movies and movie production in the art department. During the first “Black Panther” movie, Akili said the stunt coordinator asked who could ride horses and her son raised his hand. The rest is history.
He had six children, including two daughters with his current partner, who were not involved in the wreck.
Sundari was nicknamed “Sunny” because her personality lit up the room and “literally exuded the lights of the sun,” Akili said. She played softball, was a cheerleader, an actress, and was always forming dance routines with her older sister Kali. They were quick-witted and as close as sisters can be, their grandmother said.
While Kali escaped physical injuries, Akili said she remains heartbroken.
“She doesn’t know what she’s gonna do without them,” Akili said. “She’s just really pretty traumatized and devastated over it.”
Credit: Akili Ramsess
Credit: Akili Ramsess
Amid their grief, the surviving children are now staying with their other grandparents, said Akili, who lives in Snellville. A GoFundMe page to help them and the family with financial expenses had raised more than $96,000 as of Tuesday. It was created by Michelle Guido, a friend and colleague of Akili during her time working at the Orlando Sentinel. Akili also previously worked at the AJC, serving as a features photo editor in the 1990s.
That outpouring of support has come from every aspect of her life, including journalism, at her church, her large extended family, and from the movie-making community. Filmmaker Ava Marie DuVernay honored Taraja in an Instagram post, writing that he was “beautiful to behold” and “immersed himself in all aspects of the craft.” He was part of the crew at her distribution company ARRAY. The tragedy gained national and worldwide attention, and other tributes were posted by actress Niecy Nash and fashion designer Tameka Foster.
Akili said Taraja and his children brightened the lives of everyone they touched. While she knows a parent should never have to bury their children, let alone their grandchildren, she feels fortunate for the time she was able to spend with them.
Credit: Akili Ramsess
Credit: Akili Ramsess
Even in mourning, she still smiles knowing everything her son accomplished in life: from a path that started from learning to work with his hands from his artist father, to learning all aspects of the film industry. He was nonchalant, Akili said, but loved what he did, which also included martial arts and riding motorcycles, just like his parents.
“As a parent, the best thing you can see is seeing your children fulfilling their dreams and it just made me so proud to see,” Akili said. “His dad and I would just sit in theaters and wait to see the credits roll, so we can see his name up on the screen. It was a thrill.”
