Zach Braff honors late friend Nick Cordero with touching tribute tattoo
Zach Braff is making Nick Cordero a permanent part of his life.
Braff on Wednesday shared a photo of the new tattoo of Cordero, who died of coronavirus complications in July. The tribute features an intricate sketch of a joyful Cordero in his prime, mid-dance in a three-piece suit and hat – apparently a reference to his 2014 Broadway musical "Bullets Over Broadway" that the two starred in together.
Dr. Woo, Braff's tattoo artist, posted a black and white photo of the finished work, which Braff also reposted to his own Instagram Story.
“In loving memory to the greatest,” Woo wrote in the caption. “@nickcordero1 on his friend @zachbraff.”
Cordero's wife, Amanda Kloots, reacted to the photo, commenting, "Need to come see you for one."
In loving memory to the greatest 🌟 @nickcordero1 on his friend @zachbraff 🙏🏼❤️
A post shared by Doctor Woo (@_dr_woo_) on Aug 5, 2020 at 1:21pm PDT
Rest in peace: Broadway star Nick Cordero dies at 41 after coronavirus struggle highlighted by wife Amanda Kloots
Over the course of 13 weeks, Cordero faced a multitude of serious complications, including a leg amputation, infections in his lungs and the insertion of a temporary pacemaker. While he had shown signs of improvement, his numerous COVID-19 complications proved too much to overcome.
"I have honestly never known a kinder person," Braff wrote on Instagram the night of Cordero's death. "But Covid doesn’t care about the purity of your soul, or the goodness in your heart."
'Devastating': Katharine McPhee, Zach Braff react to Broadway star Nick Cordero's coronavirus death
Braff opened up about the death of his friend during his "Fake Doctors, Real Friends" podcast on July 7, stating that "one of the hardest things" is seeing young people's attitude toward the virus, including those who brush it off as being "like the flu."
"For some, that's true and for some, there's what happened to Nick, where it just destroys your body," Braff said to co-host Donald Faison, before listing out Cordero's complications. He went on to praise Kloots, who had been sharing Cordero's health journey to more than 500,000 Instagram followers, calling her "the ultimate wife."
Contributing: Sara Moniuszko
Remembering Nick Cordero: Amanda Kloots' most memorable quotes on keeping faith amid tragedy
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nick Cordero's death: Zach Braff gets tattoo to honor his late friend
