Hallmark hunk Michael Heslin died because Vegas restaurant staff halted CPR during medical emergency: lawsuit

Michael Heslin -- the handsome gay actor known for his soulful green eyes, sharp jawline and magnetic screen presence -- died suddenly after suffering a heart attack during a birthday trip to Las Vegas. He was just 30, in the prime of his life and beauty.

The 5-11, Baltimore-born actor, who lit up the screen in the Zoe Saldana series "Lioness" and the TV movie "The Holiday Plan," collapsed while dining at Javier’s Restaurant at the Aria Hotel on the Strip in June 2024. 

His shocking death has now become the subject of a wrongful death lawsuit filed by his husband, musician Scotty Dynamo, in Clark County District Court.

The suit alleges that restaurant staff failed to perform CPR or retrieve the defibrillator on-site, even as Heslin -- tall, athletic and radiating health -- showed clear signs of distress. 

According to the suit, a woman who rushed to help was stopped by employees, while Heslin’s friends were even pushed out of the restaurant as they desperately tried to save him.

The tragedy is made more painful by Heslin’s reputation not only as a rising star but also as one of the most gorgeous faces in Hollywood. With his classically handsome looks, sculpted physique and disarming smile, Heslin embodied leading-man charisma. He was widely adored in the LGBTQ community, both as a proud gay actor and as a dreamboat whose Instagram posts often drew swoons and admiration.

Dynamo, still reeling from the loss, shared his heartbreak online, calling the death an unimaginable shock: 

“He was young, in perfect health,” he wrote, adding that the couple had been in the early stages of planning a family and even swapping favorite baby names for their future children.

The devastating loss is more than just the passing of a talented actor -- it’s the silencing of a gay love story in bloom, the loss of a husband whose beauty, warmth and vitality left everyone around him dazzled.

The Aria Hotel in Las Vegas

Previously: ‘Lioness’ actor Mike Heslin dead at 30: ‘Doctors have no explanation’