Lance Reddick, ‘The Wire’ and ‘John Wick’ Star, Dies at 60

[albatross]

Lance Reddick, ‘The Wire’ and ‘John Wick’ Star, Dies at 60

Lance Reddick, who appeared in major TV series like HBO’s “The Wire,” Fox’s “Fringe” and films like the “John Wick” franchise, which is about to debut “John Wick: Chapter 4” next week, died of natural causes Friday morning, Variety has confirmed with his reps. He was 60.

He was found dead at his Studio City home in Los Angeles Friday morning, according to TMZ, which first reported the news.

In the upcoming “John Wick: Chapter 4,” which is set to release in theaters on March 24, Reddick reprises his role as Charon, the concierge at the Continental Hotel in New York City who appeared in all four entries. Charon worked alongside Keanu Reeve’s un-retired hitman, notably looking after John’s new dog in the second installment and joining in on the gun-toting action in the third movie. Reddick was also slated to appear in the upcoming “Ballerina” spinoff, starring Ana de Armas.

Reddick’s first major TV role came on Season 4 of HBO’s prison drama “Oz” in 2000. He played Detective Johnny Basil, an undercover officer who tries to shut down the drug trade but soon becomes an addict himself and murders a corrupt cop by pushing him down an elevator shaft. After being sent to Oz, Basil gets stabbed to death by Seth Gilliam’s character Clayton Hughes.

HBO kept Reddick around and later cast him as Baltimore police lieutenant Cedric Daniels, one of the leads, on “The Wire” in 2002. He was in charge of the narcotics division and slowly rose through its ranks during the show’s five-season run, butting heads frequently with his superiors. In the show’s finale, he resigned from his post as commissioner and became a criminal defense lawyer.

After “The Wire” ended in 2008, Reddick joined “Fringe” later that year as Phillip Broyles, a special agent for Homeland Security and head of the Fringe division. The group investigated cases relating to fringe science, pseudoscience and alternate timelines.

In 2014, Reddick was cast as another police chief, but this time on Amazon’s “Bosch” series, which ended in 2021. He played deputy chief Irvin Irving and was nominated for a Saturn Award for the role, after earning two nods for “Fringe.”

More recently, Reddick starred as Albert Wesker last year on Netflix’s short-lived series “Resident Evil,” an adaptation of the popular zombie video game. He also provided voice work on Season 2 of Amazon’s “The Legend of Vox Machina,” which released in January. His other voice roles included the villain Sylens in the two popular PlayStation games “Horizon: Zero Dawn” and “Horizon: Forbidden West,” which released last year, plus voicing Commander Zavala in the long-running “Destiny” franchise.

Reddick was cast as the Greek god Zeus in Disney+’s highly anticipated “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series, adapted from the popular tween books by Rick Riordan. His other upcoming role’s include Hulu’s “White Men Can’t Jump” remake, set to release May 19, Danny DeVito’s “St. Sebastian,” Netflix’s Shirley Chisholm biopic “Shirley,” Showtime’s “The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial” and the space drama “Apteros.”

Reddick is survived by his wife, Stephanie Reddick, and children, Yvonne Nicole Reddick and Christopher Reddick. Donations in his memory can be made to momcares.org in Baltimore, his hometown.

variety.com/2023/film/obituaries-people-news/lance-reddick-dead-the-wire-john-wick-1235557886/

This sucks. He was great in everything I've ever seen him in.

[Sarzy]

Aw that's sad. I liked him as Cedric in The Wire.

[tulip]

60 and of natural causes? That is so young and very scary. RIP.

[Sarzy]

^ Could mean a heart attack or any illness.

[lindsaywhit]

Sad. He had a certain presence and I liked him in everything I saw him in.

[daphodil]

Mar 17, 2023 21:51:29 GMT lindsaywhit said:

Sad. He had a certain presence and I liked him in everything I saw him in.

Same.

[Taniwha]

Ditto. I knew him best from John Wick. He had a gravitas but also a twinkle in his eye.

[constancespry]

Noooooo, that’s way too young!! I loved him in The Wire.

[cornflakegrl]

I'm a Fringe nuthead and know him best from that. I'm sad he's gone and so young!

[Cartermrc]

He was one of my favorites in the Wick movies. Damn it!

[sputnik]

he was such an underrated actor and had such presence. this is really sad, and he was way too young.

[Sarzy]

The late actor Lance Reddick died of heart disease, according to his death certificate.

Reddick, who died in March at age 60, had his causes of death listed as ischemic heart disease and atherosclerotic coronary artery disease, according to a document obtained by TMZ on Thursday.
The actor had been discovered in his home on March 17 and was initially reported to have died of natural causes, which the death certificate confirms.

The death certificate also indicated that Reddick would be cremated.

The ischemic heart disease and coronary artery disease terms are often used interchangeably, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).


www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-11946989/Lance-Reddicks-cause-death-revealed-Wire-actor-died-heart-disease-60.html

[greysfang]

That's sad.

[tulip]

It sounds like the family is skeptical of the cause of death. But, you can appear fit and still have coronary heart disease. He certainly died too young. So agree with the comments about him being a presence. He was one of those actors you couldn't help but watch when he was on screen. This is from yahoo:


Lance Reddick's Family Questions Actor's Cause of Death Which Is Listed as Heart Disease

Lance Reddick died from heart disease, according to the actor's death certificate. TMZ obtained the document that lists his immediate cause of death as ischemic heart disease as well as atherosclerotic coronary artery disease. However, Reddick's lawyer issued a statement on Thursday and said the finding "is not corroborated and is inconsistent with the facts known to the family."

Ischemic heart disease is caused by narrowed heart arteries, according to the American Heart Association. When arteries are narrowed, less blood and oxygen reach the heart muscle. Coronary heart disease is a common term for the buildup of plaque (fatty substances) in the heart's arteries that could lead to heart attack.

When contacted by Yahoo Entertainment, a representative for Reddick issued the following statement via attorney James Hornstein:

I have represented Lance Reddick for many years and continue to represent his wife Stephanie. The coroner statement on the death certificate is not a result of an autopsy. No autopsy was performed on Lance. To my knowledge, no medical examination of Lance during his lifetime ever indicated such conditions.

Lance was the most physically fit person I’ve ever known. He exercised daily at his home gym, including extensive cardio work, and the availability of gym facilities was a contractual requirement for his work away from home. He ate as if a dietician was monitoring his every meal. The information appearing on the death certificate is wholly inconsistent with his lifestyle. On behalf of Stephanie Reddick, the death certificate information is not corroborated and is inconsistent with the facts known to the family.

Reddick, who starred on shows like The Wire and Oz, died suddenly on March 17. The actor's spokesperson confirmed to Yahoo he passed away from natural causes. Reddick was in the midst of a press tour for John Wick: Chapter 4 at the time, he plays Charon in the film franchise, and was honored by Keanu Reeves and his co-stars at the film's premiere.

Reeves was emotional last month as he talked about Reddick, whom he called "a remarkable artist and a special person with grace and dignity."

"He had this idea for the way that he wanted [his John Wick] character to speak — and just his enthusiasm and passion. And the way that he and I got to work and kind of speak the unspoken, that connection. It's just really cool," Reeves told People.

Stephanie released a statement on Instagram after his death saying he "was taken from us far too soon."

"Thank you for all your overwhelming love, support and beautiful stories shared on these platforms over the last day. I see your messages and can't begin to express how grateful I am to have them," Stephanie wrote. She married the actor in 2011 and they shared children Yvonne Nicole and Christopher.

Stephanie thanked the "thousands of Destiny players who played in special tribute to Lance," referring to his pivotal role in the cult-favorite video game. "Lance loved you as much as he loved the game."

[kittylady]

I'm not saying that they shouldn't question the results if they feel that there's cause for concern, but a the same time all the clean eating and exercise in the world isn't going to stop a genetic predisposition to something like high blood calcium, which has been linked to coronary artery disease. You can reduce the risks, but you'll be hard pressed to completely outrun it.