Vale: Lance Reddick
US character actor best known for Oz, The Wire, Bosch and John Wick, has died.
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US character actor Lance Reddick, best known for Oz, The Wire, Bosch and John Wick has died, aged 60.
He died “suddenly” on Friday his publicist said in a statement, due to natural causes.
Reddick’s breakthrough role in 2000 was as Johnny Basil, a doomed undercover officer sent to prison who becomes an addict in Oz.
“I was never interested in television,” he said in 2011.
“I always saw it as a means to an end. Like so many actors, I was only interested in doing theatre and film.
“But Oz changed television. It was the beginning of HBO’s reign on quality, edgy, artistic stuff. Stuff that harkens back to great cinema of the ’60s and ’70s.
“When the opportunity for Oz came up, I jumped. And when I read the pilot for The Wire, as a guy that never wanted to be on television, I realised I had to be on this show.”
On The Wire he played Lt Cedric Daniels, on Fringe he was special agent Phillip Broyles, and he featured as Deputy Chief Irvin Irving in Bosch.
His other TV credits included Lost, Wilfred, Law & Order, American Horror Story, Key & Peele, Numb3rs, CSI: Miami, Castle, Young Sheldon, Resident Evil, The West Wing and the film One Night in Miami.
He played the multi-skilled Continental Hotel concierge Charon in the John Wick movies, plus roles in Oldboy, White House Down, I Dreamed of Africa, The Way of War, The Siege, Godzilla vs Kong, Great Expectations.
“I’m an artist at heart,” he once told the Los Angeles Times in 2009. “I feel that I’m very good at what I do.
“When I went to drama school, I knew I was at least as talented as other students, but because I was a Black man and I wasn’t pretty, I knew I would have to work my butt off to be the best that I would be, and to be noticed.”
Source: ABC
8 Responses
I had forgotten about Reddick’s Role in Oz. I have watched The Wire and Fringe recently. Daniels, Broyles and Irving are all similar characters: police leaders embroiled in departmental politics but ultimately fiercely loyal to their people. And I enjoyed his guest roles in Young Sheldon and The Blacklist. Far too young.
Very sad to hear of the death of Lance Reddick. I just saw all 3 John Wick movies recently and I really liked his concierge character Charon.
Yes, very sad news indeed. Lance was always an attraction to want to watch any show or movie he appeared in, I particularly liked him as Chief Irving in Bosch, that show would not have been the same for me without him, and neither would have Fringe.
Oz was/is one of my favourite tv series of all time. Never missed an episode and it had some of the top actors at the time. (Several were in SVU) Strange Oswald Correctional, Emerald City (reference to the Wizard of Oz ….. “no place like home”) was supposed to be a rehabilitation facility but they still all walked on the wild side which is what made it appealing to me. I would be surprised if they’d make such a similar show in today’s politically correct uptight world (Homeboys, Aryans, Muslins and Wiseguys except for Tobias Beecher all incarnated together)…..RIP Lance Reddick
He also played a character named Zavala in Destiny and Destiny 2 video game. Zavala is a major character in those games. Zavala and Mr Reddick was hugely respected in the video game community.
Really liked him in that episode of Young Sheldon. He was able to shake off that “wooden persona” at the end of the episode. Very funny.
I am currently watching him in Fringe, he has a commanding presence. RIP.
Have always admired his body of work ,to me he came across as cool calm and collected ,too young to pass R.I.P Mr Reddick.