Writer and illustrator Albert Uderzo has died at the age of 92.
The French comic book artist and scriptwriter was best known for creating the cartoon series Asterix.
His family confirmed to press that Albert died on Tuesday morning, after suffering from a heart attack.
His relatives confirmed his death was not linked to coronavirus.
"Albert Uderzo died in his sleep at his home in Neuilly, after a heart attack that was not linked to the coronavirus. He had been extremely tired for the past several weeks," his son-in-law Bernard de Choisy told AFP.
His beloved creation first appeared in print in 1959 in the French magazine Pilote, and has gone on to sell more than 380 million copies in 100 different languages internationally.
The comic books feature Asterix, a warrior in the Roman-occupied state of Gaul in the year 50 BC. Asterix, with the help of his friend Obelix, fights and defeats the Roman soldiers in each book after drinking a magical potion that makes him super-strong.
RIP, Albert.
