Michael Madsen, known for his menacing roles in Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill, has passed away at the age of 67, establishing himself as a distinctive figure in Quentin Tarantino’s films.
This morning, Madsen was discovered unresponsive at his home in Malibu, California, and was pronounced dead, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department watch commander Christopher Jauregui.
The cause is believed to be natural, with Madsen’s manager Ron Smith indicating that cardiac arrest was the suspected reason.
Throughout his career, Madsen amassed over 300 credits dating back to the early 1980s, many of which were in low-budget films.
He became a staple in Tarantino’s works, featuring in the Kill Bill series and The Hateful Eight.
(L-R) Michael Madsen and Harvey Keitel in the 1992 film Reservoir Dogs
“In the last two years, Michael Madsen was creating remarkable work in independent cinema, including anticipated projects like Resurrection Road, Concessions, and Cookbook For Southern Housewives, and he was eagerly looking forward to this next chapter in his life,” his managers, Ron Smith and Susan Ferris, alongside publicist Liz Rodriguez, announced in a statement.
They also noted that he “was among Hollywood’s most iconic actors, and he will be greatly missed.”
During a handprint ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre in November 2020, Madsen reminisced about his first trip to Hollywood in the early 1980s.
“I arrived and wandered around, pondering if someday, somehow, this could be a part of my life.
“And I was unsure because I had no idea what I would do with my life at that time,” he stated.
“I could have been a bricklayer. I could have been an architect. I could have been a garbage man. I could have been nothing. But I was fortunate. I was fortunate to become an actor.”
Source: Associated Press
