William Hurt was an actor who won an Academy Award for his performance in “Kiss of the Spider Woman” and starred in many other movies including “Body Heat,” “The Big Chill,” and “Children of a Lesser God.”
- Died: March 13, 2022 (Who else died on March 13?)
- Details of death: Died in Portland, Oregon of complications of prostate cancer at the age of 71.
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Acting career
Hurt studied drama at Juilliard and began his career with stage work. He would return to the stage throughout his career, but it was with leading roles in movies of the 1980s that he received the most notice. His movie debut was 1980’s “Altered States,” in which he played a psychologist whose experiments with sensory deprivation yield surprising results. Hurt became a star with the 1981 neo-noir “Body Heat,” quickly followed by starring roles in “The Big Chill” and “Gorky Park.”
Hurt won an Academy Award for Best Actor for 1985’s “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” and his next two movies – “Children of a Lesser God” and “Broadcast News” – brought him nominations, for three consecutive Best Actor nominations. He had become known for thoughtful, intelligent performances and for philosophical responses in interviews. Notable movies in Hurt’s mid-career period include “The Doctor,” “Jane Eyre,” and “A.I. Artificial Intelligence.”
Hurt received a fourth Oscar nomination, for best Supporting Actor, for his small but unforgettable role in 2005’s “A History of Violence,” and he was nominated for a SAG Award for 2007’s “Into the Wild.”
He joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) in 2008 with “The Incredible Hulk,” playing General Thaddeus Ross, whose experiments turned Bruce Banner into the Hulk. Hurt played Ross in other MCU films including “Captain America: Civil War” and “Avengers: Endgame.” Most recently, he played Ross in “Black Widow.”
Hurt only made occasional TV appearances before the last two decades, including a starring role in the 1978 TV movie “Verna: USO Girl.” More recently, he appeared in series including “Beowulf,” “Goliath,” and “Condor.” Hurt received Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for his performance in the series “Damages” and in the TV movie “Too Big to Fail.” Other notable TV roles included Texas Ranger Frank Hamer in the 2013 miniseries “Bonnie & Clyde” and physicist Richard Feynman in the BBC TV movie “The Challenger Disaster.”
Personal life and controversy
Hurt was married to actress Mary Beth Hurt for 11 years before their 1982 divorce. He later had children with three women, Sandra Jennings, Heidi Henderson, and Sandrine Bonnaire. For several years in the 1980s, he was in a relationship with actress Marlee Matlin, who later alleged that Hurt had physically and verbally abused her during their relationship. Hurt did not deny the allegations but said in a 2009 statement, “My own recollection is that we both apologized and both did a great deal to heal our lives. Of course, I did and do apologize for any pain I caused. And I know we both have grown. I wish Marlee and her family nothing but good.”
Notable quote
“Success is isolating. Certainly the Oscar was isolating. In some ways, it was antithetical to what I was aiming at. I didn’t want to be isolated. I didn’t want some big target on my chest saying: ‘He’s an Oscar-winner, he’s the one to be.’ I wanted to be an actor, so I was very confused about it. Sometimes I’m still confused about it. You’re skeptical and honored and scared because you’re carrying a weight now that you weren’t carrying before.” —from a 2004 interview for Irish Independent
Tributes to William Hurt
Full obituary: The New York Times
