Today we learned that iconic screen and stage actor John Hurt has died from pancreatic cancer. He was 77. The British actor was best known for his Oscar-nominated role in The Elephant Man, as well as greats like Alien, Immortals and Hercules.
He gave up smoking and drinking during his fourth marriage. He lived in Cromer, Norfolk. In 2007, Hurt took part in the BBC genealogical television series Who Do You Think You Are?, which investigated part of his family history.
That year he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and he died in 2017. Hurt's last roles were an elderly barfly in My Name Is Lenny, a terminally ill screenwriter in That Good Night, and the head of the Israeli intelligence agency in Damascus Cover, all of which premiered later that year.
He was the voice of Aragron in The Lord of the Rings (1978), which featured Norman Bird as Bilbo, Christopher Guard as Frodo, and William Squire as Gandalf. In other films, Hurt went on to work with two other Gandalfs, Bilbos and Frodos, and one other Sam Gamgee.
When Gandalf died, his divine being left his set physical form, and about 20 days later, he was returned to life. “Darkness took me;” he says to Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli in The Two Towers, “and I strayed out of thought and time, and I wandered far on roads that I will not tell.
In the original trilogy, Connery was offered the role of Gandalf, but he passed on playing the wise wizard as he reported didn't understand the script. With Connery's decision, not only did we lose out on seeing his performance as the white/gray wizard, but he supposedly lost out on a whopping $450 million.
Hurt shot to international stardom, however, on TV where he was allowed to display his true, fearless range. He reaped widespread acclaim for his embodiment of the tormented gay writer and raconteur Quentin Crisp in the landmark television play The Naked Civil Servant (1975), adapted from Crisp's autobiography.
Hurt's was not a conventional incarnation of the Doctor; although Hurt portrayed the ninth in chronological order, he is officially known as the War Doctor.
In his work habits, Travolta is strict and disciplined. He drinks fine wine, but does so sparingly, only a few times a month. Cigars are one of his few indulgences. "I smoke about five cigars a week, but I wouldn't call myself a connoisseur.
Throughout most of Hollywood cinematic history, however, actors smoked real tobacco products on set. Humphrey Bogart, John Travolta, Rita Hayworth, James Dean, and Marlene Dietrich are just some of the big-name stars known to have performed with a real cigarette in hand.
John Hurt, of course, makes the list. The actor died so often that it was surprising when he finished a movie unscathed – perishing on screen 43 times.
He was married to Donna Peacock from 1984 until they divorced in 1990. He was married to Jo Dalton from 1990 until they divorced in 1996. He married Ann Rees Meyers in 2005. Hurt had two sons with Dalton.
He had English as well as German, Scottish, and Irish ancestry. No relation to Sir John Hurt (Alien (1979), The Elephant Man (1980)), despite a popular misconception.
NEW YORK — Daniel Radcliffe gets naked during “Equus,” but his Broadway co-star and “Harry Potter” cohort Richard Griffiths is the one who's shed 60 pounds over the last year — with 40 more to go. “I want to become a sex god,” says Griffiths, chuckling.
Adrian John Rawlins (born 27 March 1958) is an English actor best known for playing Arthur Kidd in The Woman in Black and James Potter in the Harry Potter films. In 2019, he starred in Chernobyl as Nikolai Fomin.
In the books, Vernon is described as a "big, beefy man" with black hair and a matching moustache and being in his mid-thirties. In the films, however, he is a middle aged man who has greying hair and moustache.
Hurt lived in County Wicklow for five years and for two years in Bunclody, Co Wexford. He was particularly familiar to Irish audiences for his celebrated role as Bird O'Donnell in Jim Sheridan's film adaptation of the John B Keane play, The Field.
While speaking on the Howard Stern Show in 2019, Crowe confirmed long-held suspicions that he was up for the role. The studio had heavy interest in him, but after a phone call with Jackson, he could gauge that the director had other stars in mind. It was due to this lack of interest that it didn't happen.
Key Points. 1 After countless legal battles on Sean Connery's estate, Connery's family has inherited all of his wealth. 2 Sean Connery had a net worth of $400 million at the time of his death. 3 He was best known for playing James Bond.
Jake Gyllenhaal tried out for Frodo, but did no research on the role and bombed so badly that he was advised to fire his agent. Sean Connery and Patrick Stewart were both asked to be Gandalf. Stewart was just plain not interested in the character, and Connery passed as he did not understand the script.
