William Hurt, who won an Oscar for his role as a gay prisoner Luis Alberto Molina in Kiss of the Spider Woman, has died at the age of 71. His son Will explained the actor had passed on from “natural causes”, four years on from his prostate cancer diagnosis.
According to Deadline, Will posted: “It is with great sadness that the Hurt family mourns the passing of William Hurt, beloved father and Oscar winning actor, on March 13, 2022, one week before his 72nd birthday.
“He died peacefully, among family, of natural causes. The family requests privacy at this time.”
Hurt was nominated for three consecutive Academy Awards nominations for Best Actor in the 1980s, for Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), Children of a Lesser God (1986) and Broadcast News (1987).
His debut film role was in sci-fi thriller Altered States, for which he received a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year.
Hurt was also a big star on the stage, receiving his first Tony Award nomination in 1985 for the Broadway production of Hurlyburly.
He starred in Off-Broadway productions including Henry V, Fifth of July, Richard II and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
And in 2005, he earned his fourth Academy Award nomination for his supporting performance in David Cronenberg’s crime thriller A History of Violence.
More recently, he starred opposite Scarlett Johansson in Marvel’s Black Widow, in which he played Thaddeus Ross.
In 2016, he had been diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer which had spread to the bone.
His fans and fellow actors paid tribute on social media following the news.
Keith Olbermann wrote: “Jesus. This man, who I did not know but whose work I always admired, grabbed me at the Emmys the year after my father died and talked to me for 15 minutes about him and the importance of recognizing fatherhood in this life.
“I am still moved. #RIP”.
Don Winslow added: “RIP. A brilliant actor.”
“Grateful that I had the opportunity to work with William Hurt. I admired his acting so much and watching his commitment in person was remarkable. My thoughts are with his family,” penned Topher Grace.
John Fugelsang tweeted: “God Bless William Hurt. There’s no way to overstate how he dominated film acting in the 1980s. I had pics of him all over my wall as ateenager.
“He got an Oscar nom in “A History of Violence” for 8 minutes of screen time. He used to call me “Birdsong” in emails. Thank you, Bill.”
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