Glen Hansard, Irish musician who won Oscar for 'Once,' dies in motorcycle crash

LONDON (AP) — Irish singer-songwriter Glen Hansard, who won an Academy Award for the 2007 film “Once,” died in a motorcycle crash on the outskirts of Dublin early Wednesday, his management said. He was 56.

ATC Management told broadcaster RTE Hansard's family was “deeply shocked and heartbroken.”

News of his death brought tributes from fellow musicians including Bruce Springsteen, who said on Instagram he was “heartbroken” at the loss of “a great musician, a good friend and a generous and gracious man.”

Irish police said a man in his 50s died in single-vehicle motorcycle crash in Lucan, on the western outskirts of the Irish capital, before 4:30 a.m. Wednesday. The man, who they did not name, was treated at the scene but pronounced dead a short time later.

Hansard combined acting and a musical career. He played a member of a Dublin soul band in the hit 1991 movie “The Commitments” and won an Oscar in 2008 for the song “Falling Slowly,” which he co-wrote for the indie musical “Once" with co-star Markéta Irglová.

“Once,” a love story about two struggling musicians, was later adapted for Broadway, again with songs by Hansard and Irglová. It won eight Tony Awards in 2012, including best musical.

Hansard was long-serving front man for rock band The Frames, half of rock duo The Swell Season with Irglová and released solo albums including “Didn’t He Ramble,” which was nominated for a Grammy for Best Folk Album in 2016.

Ireland's President Catherine Connolly said he was one of Ireland’s great singer-songwriters.

“Glen was one of the vital driving influences of the Irish music world, bringing people together in the sharing of live music," Connolly said. "He will be sorely missed by all who knew him or experienced his work.”

Actor-comedian Chris O’Dowd said Hansard’s “energizing melodies and soulful, searching voice made the tough times more manageable, the stagnant times more beautiful, and the joyful times even more memorable.”

Hansard started out as a busker on the streets of Dublin. He became famous for leading the Christmas Eve busk outside Dublin's Gaiety Theatre, where members of the public gathered to see famous Irish musicians perform in aid of a homelessness charity.

Former Irish president Michael D. Higgins said Hansard was a “wonderful musician and performer” who also "placed great emphasis throughout his life to the importance of tackling the problems of society."

At the funeral of The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan in 2023, Hansard performed a rousing version of The Pogues' song “Fairytale Of New York” with Irish singer Lisa O’Neill that had the congregation dancing in the aisles of the church.

Hansard is survived by his wife, Finnish poet Maire Saaritsa, and their 3-year-old son, Christy.

A previous version of this story incorrectly stated Hansard was awarded an Oscar in 2007. He received the award in 2008.

FILE - Marketa Irglova, left, and Glen Hansard accept the Oscar for best original song for "Falling Slowly" from the motion picture "Once" at the 80th Academy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 24, 2008. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

FILE - Glen Hansard appears at the 58th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 15, 2016. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - Marketa Irglova, left, and Glen Hansard appear after performing during the 80th Academy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 24, 2008. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

FILE - Grammy-winning Irish singer/songwriter Glen Hansard performs at The Caverns in Pelham, Tenn., on March 29, 2019. (AP Photo/Ron Harris, File)

FILE - Glen Hansard performs at Lollapalooza in Chicago's Grant Park on Sunday, Aug. 3, 2014. (Photo by Steve C. Mitchell/Invision/AP, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday he may pull acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination for the full-time post to avoid making concessions to Senate Republicans demanding limits to a sweeping tax audit immunity deal benefiting the president and members of his family that Trump negotiated with his own Department of Justice.

Trump doubled down on choosing his former personal lawyer as the nation’s top lawman, calling him “a STAR” and saying he will keep him in the role as acting attorney general until Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina leave office.

“I have no objection to temporarily withdrawing Todd’s name, if they do not do the right thing, and putting him back after Cornyn and Tillis are out of office,” Trump posted on his social media site.

Cornyn and Tillis, who both leave office next year, have said they won't back Blanche's nomination without additional assurances spelling an end to a proposed $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” created to resolve Trump’s lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service over the leak of his tax returns. Through Blanche has repeatedly insisted that the fund is not moving forward, skeptical lawmakers have pushed for a commitment in writing especially since Trump has expressed continued support for the idea.

The two senators have also pressed Trump's administration to modify the tax immunity agreement to make clear that it covers only existing audits and does not protect the president from examination of future tax filings.

Tillis characterized the president’s position as “win a battle, lose a war.”

“It makes no sense to me,” Tillis said. “This is not popular. The president’s not winning on this issue. It is killing some of our candidates because they can’t explain it. And now, it looks like they weren’t being honest when they said it was inoperative.”

The Senate Judiciary Committee was forced to scrap a planned vote for Thursday to advance Blanche's nomination after the Justice Department and the Republican senators failed to reach a resolution despite hours of negotiations. With all Democratic senators opposed, just one Republican holdout on the committee could sink Blanche’s prospects for confirmation.

“I don’t know whether they think they can wait us out or we’ll cave, but I assure you we won’t,” Cornyn said Thursday of the Trump administration. In a social media post responding to Trump's suggestion that he may pull Blanche's nomination, Cornyn wrote that the president is “mistaken if he believes concerns about the provisions in his tax lawsuit settlement are limited to me and Senator Tillis.”

Through it would be politically embarrassing for the Trump administration, pulling Blanche’s nomination would likely have little practical impact on the management of the Justice Department.

Blanche can still lead the department as either acting attorney general or deputy attorney general, the No. 2 post he was confirmed to last year. The deputy attorney general, who runs the day-to-day operations of the law enforcement agency, is able to perform the duties of the attorney general if that post is vacant.

The department said in June that it was no longer moving forward with the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” amid bipartisan outrage, but officials have said the audit immunity agreement for Trump remains in place.

Associated Press reporters Kevin Freking and Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington contributed to this report.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., arrives for a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill, Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, arrives for a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill, Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., arrives for a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill, Thursday, July 30, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

FILE - Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is sworn in as he appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

FILE - Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)