American actor Michael Madsen has passed away aged 67 after suffering a cardiac arrest at his home in Malibu, California on Thursday, July 3rd his representatives have confirmed.
Born in Chicago in 1957, Madsen began his career on stage and scored his first notable screen role with a small part in 1983’s WarGames. He’d go on to earn several credits throughout the next decade with roles in films such as Kill Me Again, The End of Innocence, The Doors and Thelma & Louise before rising to prominence with his 1992 role as Mr. Blonde in Quentin Tarantino’s controversial 1992 film Reservoir Dogs.
Following his breakthrough, Madsen would go on to become a prolific character actor across a host of films during the next three decades, with notable credits including Free Willy, Wyatt Earp, Species, Mulholland Falls, Donnie Brasco, Die Another Day and Sin City, as well as reuniting with Quentin Tarantino for Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, The Hateful Eight and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
“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,” reads a statement from Madsen’s management team. “Michael was also preparing to release a new book called Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems currently being edited. Michael Madsen was one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors, who will be missed by many.”
