Washington (USA) - He played one of the earliest Nickelodeon movie villains and appeared in several TV series. Actor Jan Schwieterman has died at the age of 52.

As the New York Post reports, the 52-year-old died on February 28 at Mercy Hospital in Washington after a short battle with cancer.

"It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of my brother Jan," his brother Chad Schwieterman confirmed in a Facebook post. "He had only recently found out that he had an aggressive form of stage four cancer."

Schwieterman's early death came as a shock to the entire family and to the celebrity actor's friends, his brother wrote.

Shortly after graduating from high school, Schwieterman moved to Los Angeles to become an actor. He initially kept his head above water with guest roles in television series such as "McKenna", "ER" and "Forever".

He achieved greater fame when he was chosen for the leading role of Kurt Bozwell, the owner of a rival fast food restaurant, in the comedy "Good Burger". The film, which was co-produced by the TV channel Nickelodeon, was aimed primarily at a younger audience.

After his success in the comedy film, Jan Schwieterman played a guest role in "Felicity" and had a handful of other projects. After 2000, he took a seven-year break from the film industry.

"J.P. loved to travel. He traveled to many countries during his life, most recently Thailand. He was an artist of photography and painting. He studied martial arts and loved to play Dungeons and Dragons," Schwieterman's obituary on Facebook reads.

The 52-year-old is survived by his parents Clara and Lee-Roy, two sisters, his brother, nieces, nephews and cousins.