NY.- Lance Reddick, a character actor who specialized in intense, cold, sinister, and authoritative characters on film and television, including his appearances on “The Wire,” “Fringe” and the “John Wick” franchise, has died, had 60 years.
Reddick passed away “suddenly” on Friday morning, his publicist Mia Hansen said in a statement, attributing his death to natural causes. Reddick’s death was first reported by the celebrity website TMZ.com.
Social media was abuzz with tributes after the news broke, with filmmaker James Gunn calling Reddick “an incredibly nice guy, an incredibly talented actor” in a tweet. Wendell Pierce, Reddick’s co-star on “The Wire” paid tribute to him on Twitter, “a man of great strength and grace,” he wrote. “As talented as a musician as he was as an actor. The epitome of class.”
Reddick was often dressed in a suit or impeccable uniform during his career, in which he played tall, taciturn and elegant distinguished men. He was famous for his role as Lieutenant Cedric Daniels in the hit HBO series “The Wire”, where his character was caught up in the political dealings of the Baltimore Police Department.
“I am an artist at heart. I feel like I’m very good at what I do. When I went to drama school, I knew I was at least as talented as the other students, but because I was black and not good looking, I knew I would have to work hard to be my best and be noticed,” he told Los Angeles. Times in 2009.
Reddick also starred in the Fox series “Fringe” as Special Agent Phillip Broyles, the sharply dressed Matthew Abaddon in “Lost” and played the multi-talented Continental Hotel concierge Charon in the “John Wick” films, including the fourth in the series. which will be released at the end of this month.
He earned a 2021 SAG Award nomination as part of the cast of the Regina King film “One Night in Miami.” Reddick played recurring roles on “Intelligence” and “American Horror Story” and was on the show “Bosch” during its seven years.
Upcoming projects include the 20th Century remake of “White Men Can’t Jump” and “Shirley,” the Netflix biopic about former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm. He was also slated to appear in the “John Wick” spinoff “Ballerina” as well as “The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial.”
Reddick, who was born and raised in Baltimore, graduated from Yale University Drama School and enjoyed some success after graduation landing guest and recurring roles on “CSI: Miami” and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.” ”. He also appeared in several films, including “I Dreamed of Africa”, “The Siege” and “Great Expectations”.
It was in the fourth season of “Oz,” in which he plays an undercover dispatched officer who ends up in jail and becomes addicted, that Reddick had a breakout role.
“I was never interested in television. I always saw it as a means to an end. Like many actors, I was only interested in doing theater and cinema. But ‘Oz’ changed television. It was the beginning of HBO’s reign in terms of artistic, avant-garde and quality material. Stuff that goes back to the great cinema of the ’60s and ’70s,” he told The Associated Press in 2011.
“When the opportunity for ‘Oz’ arose, I jumped. And when I read the pilot for ‘The Wire,’ as a guy who never wanted to be on TV, I knew I had to be on this show.”
Reddick studied at the prestigious Eastman School of Music, where he learned classical composition and played the piano. His first album, the jazzy “Contemplations and Remembrances”, came out in 2011.
Reddick had a recurring role as Jeffrey Tetazoo, director of the Central Intelligence Agency, on CBS’s “Intelligence.” In “American Horror Story: Coven” he played Papa Legba, the intermediary between humanity and the spirit world.
Reddick is survived by his wife, Stephanie Reddick, and their children Yvonne Nicole Reddick and Christopher Reddick.
