Hollywood has lost another iconic actor.
On Thursday, NBC4 Los Angeles sadly broke the news that Michael Madsen passed away. Madsen was one of our best ever tough guy actors in films like Reservoir Dogs, The Getaway, Wyatt Earp, The Hateful Eight, and of course Kill Bill. His gruff voice and looming presence made him a Quentin Tarantino favorite.
Per a report from the local sheriff’s office, he was pronounced dead at his home after police received a 911 call. The actor’s manager Ron Smith confirmed the sad news to People in a statement:
“What we understand is Michael had a cardiac arrest and was found unresponsive in his Malibu home earlier this morning.”
According to a separate report from Michael’s longtime pal and assistant Dougie Smith, it was him who found the Sin City actor deceased and called 911. Dougie said he hadn’t heard from him at all on Wednesday, so he popped by his home to check on him. He found the actor unresponsive in his bed around 8:30 Thursday morning. So sad.
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More sad news is how unexpected Michael’s death was for everyone. The 67-year-old recently went for a routine trip to UCLA to get his rotator cuff looked at. Dougie told the outlet his friend had fallen off a horse about 2 years ago and he was having complications with his shoulder. He was apparently considering getting surgery but decided to put it off — due to how busy he was AND the fact docs gave him a clean bill of health at the hospital.
The actor’s assistant told TMZ he’d last spoken to him on Tuesday and he sounded “great”:
“He looked like he had been in the best health he had been in all year!”
Heartbreaking.
Michael’s managers, Smith and Susan Ferris, along with his publicist Liz Rodriguez, issued a statement regarding his untimely passing:
“In the last two years Michael Madsen has been doing some incredible work with independent film, including upcoming feature films Resurrection Road, Concessions and Cookbook for Southern Housewives, and was really looking forward to this next chapter in his life. Michael was also preparing to release a new book called Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems, currently being edited.”
It doesn’t sound like he was prepared for his death, either. Gut-wrenching. They added:
“Michael Madsen was one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors, who will be missed by many.”
Our heart goes out to Michael’s family, friends, and loved ones. May he rest in peace.
[Image via IPA/WENN.com/Lionsgate/YouTube]
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