William Hurt, Oscar-winning actor, dies aged 71

Oscar-winning actor William Hurt has died at the age of 71, as confirmed by his son Will. 

As reported by Deadline (and confirmed by his friend Gerry Byrne to Variety), the actor’s son posted today the his father passed away over the weekend. “It is with great sadness that the Hurt family mourns the passing of William Hurt, beloved father and Oscar winning actor, on March 13th, 2022, one week before his 72nd birthday,” he said. “He died peacefully, among family, of natural causes. The family requests privacy at this time.”

Hurt came relatively late to film, making his debut at the age of 30 in Ken Russell’s science fiction thriller Altered States. That earned him a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year, and over the following decade he established himself as one of Hollywood’s finest talents.

Hurt received three nods in a row for the Academy Award for Best Actor – Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), Children of a Lesser God (1986), and Broadcast News (1987) – winning for the first of these. He continued making prominent appearances in characters roles until this year, including notable roles in A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), The Village (2004), The Good Shepherd (2006), Into the Wild (2007), and Robin Hood (2010).

He became better known to a new generation when he entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe with his portrayal of Thaddeus Ross in five films: The Incredible Hulk (2010), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), and most recently Black Widow (2021).

Hurt earned his fourth and last Oscar nomination in 2005, for his excellent supporting performance in Dave Cronenberg’s crime thriller A History of Violence. He was also an active theatre actor, particularly during his prolific 80s period, and received a Tony Award nomination in 1985 for the Broadway production of Hurlyburly.

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Check out William Hurt winning the Oscar in 1986:

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