Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Actors Who've Passed Away During Filming...

This coming Friday (July 25), a British espionage-thriller film based on a novel by John le Carré - A Most Wanted Man is set to be released. The star of the film is the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. Hoffman passed away earlier this year, which was a considerable loss to to the performance industry. Hoffman's work on the film had been completed, but it's always strange to have films released after a performer has passed away. In fact, there are still two more movies which are set to be released in the next couple of years in which Hoffman has an integral part (Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 and Part 2). He had completed filming Part 1, but still had a few scenes left for Part 2. The filmmakers have worked around this problem. Hoffman will be digitally recreated for a major scene that included his character, one that Hoffman had left to shoot at the time of his death. Some of his remaining dialogue was rewritten and given to other characters

Hoffman was not the first (nor will be the last) actor to have passed away during the filming of a movie. Here is a list of actors who have died during filming of a movie or television series:

Paul Walker

In November 2013, the star of the Fast & Furious franchise died in a car crash while in the middle of filming Fast & Furious 7 in Atlanta. Two films, Hours and Brick Mansions were released posthumously and Fast & Furious 7 is scheduled be released on April 3, 2015. The studio managed to complete the film using Walker's brothers (Caleb and Cody) as stand-ins and using CGI to replicate his voice and face.

Cory Monteith

Actor Cory Monteith died of a drug overdose in a hotel room in Canada on July 13, 2013, right before a new season of the show Glee was set to film. Monteith's character (Finn) was subsequently killed off the show without an indication of how his character died. 

Heath Ledger

The star of Brokeback Mountain and The Dark Knight died in 2008 after a drug overdose, about a third of the way through filming on The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. Subsequent to Ledger's death, three different actors (Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law) took over Ledger's role and the movie was released later that year.

George Reeves

George Reeves died of a controversial gunshot wound in 1959 before starting filming on a new season of The Adventures of Superman. One would think that when the actor playing Superman died, so goes the show. But the producers made a suggestion to the actor who played cub reporter, Jimmy Olson (Jack Larson) that the series "could continue as 'Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen,' with more focus on Larson continuing his character, playing opposite a 'Superman' who would be a composite of stock shots of George Reeves and a look-alike stunt double to be filmed from behind. Larson rejected the distasteful idea out of hand, and the series was truly over" (Wikipedia).

Freddie Prinze

After struggling with depression and drug use, Freddie Prinze died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in 1977 while filming Chico And The Man. His character on the show moved to Mexico, and the show continued on for one season after his death.

Michael Conrad

Winner of two Emmy awards for his portrayal of Sgt. Phil Esterhaus in Hill Street Blues, Michael Conrad died of urethral cancer in 1983 during the fourth season. It was thought his role could not be filled by anyone and so a new duty Sergeant (Sgt. Jablonski) was cast to take his place. Conrad's character suffered a heart attack while having sex with another character, Grace Gardner.

Natalie Wood

Natalie Wood died in a controversial boating accident in 1981 before completing work on Brainstorm. Even though nearly all of Wood's major scenes were completed, the studio nearly cancelled the project upon her death. All the sets were locked and frozen on all the stages. No one could get in or out without special permission while negotiations took place. The movie was released two years after her death and was completed by rewriting the remaining scenes and the use of body doubles.

Jerry Orbach

Wisecracking Det. Lennie Briscoe from Law & Order was portrayed by veteran actor Jerry Orbach who died in 2004 after battling prostate cancer for 10 years. At the time of his death, he was working on the spin off Law & Order: Trial by Jury, but only appeared in the first 2 episodes. His character's disappearance was never explained in L&O: TbJ, but other Law & Order franchises mention the demise of the character.

Marilyn Monroe

Famously, Marilyn Monroe died of a drug overdose in 1962 before she could finish filming Something's Got to Give, a remake of My Favorite Wife. The movie was never finished. Twentieth Century-Fox overhauled the entire production with mostly new cast and crew and released the differently titled Move Over, Darling, starring Doris Day, James Garner, and Polly Bergen, 16 months later. Interesting fact: had the original movie been completed and released, Monroe would have been the first mainstream star to appear nude in a movie.

Nancy Marchand

Emmy winner, Nancy Marchand died of lung cancer in 2000 while starring as Tony Soprano's manipulative mother on The Sopranos. As a result, her character's death was written into the third season story line of the show.

Oliver Reed

English actor, Oliver Reed died of a heart attack in a bar in 1999 before completing work on the Russell Crowe epic film Gladiator. Several of his scenes in the movie had to be completed using CGI techniques and, in one place, a mannequin. Interestingly, in the original script, Reed's character Proximo was supposed to live.

Brandon Lee

Son of martial arts film star, Bruce Lee, Brandon Lee was killed in 1993 in an accidental shooting on the set of his first feature film, The Crow. The movie was still released, with rewrites, a stunt double, and special effects being used for the last few scenes Lee had yet to complete.

John Spencer

John Spencer died of a heart attack in 2005 while starring on The West Wing. In the show, his character, Leo McGarry, also died of a heart attack on election night. Spencer's name remained in the opening credits for the remainder of the show's run.

John Ritter

After collapsing on the set of 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter in 2003, John Ritter was rush to the hospital, but died of an aortic dissection later that night. The show, retitled 8 Simple Rules, continued for another season with David Spade and James Garner as replacements. Ritter's character was killed off.

Redd Foxx

Comedian and actor, Redd Foxx suffered a heart attack in 1991 on the set of The Royal Family. "According to Joshua Rich at Entertainment Weekly, 'It was an end so ironic that for a brief moment cast mates figured Foxx -- whose 70s TV character often faked heart attacks -- was kidding when he grabbed a chair and fell to the floor'" (Wikipedia). The producers decided not to continue with the remaining episodes, but put the show on hiatus in order to rework the storyline. But ultimately, the show was a failure without Foxx and was subsequently cancelled.

Diana Hyland

In 1977, Diana Hyland was cast to portray the wife/mother in the ABC series Eight Is Enough. She appeared in only four episodes before falling ill with breast cancer. Her character was written out of the show and she died 12 days after the first episode aired. At the start of Season 2, Tom Bradford was identified as a 'widower' for about a year, but with no mention how his wife dies.

Jon-Erik Hexum

Jon-Erik Hexum died in 1984 after an unintentional self-inflicted blank cartridge gunshot wound to the head on the set of the television show Cover Up in which he played the male lead. The show continued production with a new actor, but was canceled after the first season.

Bela Lugosi

Horror film legend, Bela Lugosi had a heart attack in 1956 while filming Plan 9 from Outer Space. Director Ed Wood hired his wife's chiropractor, Tom Mason, as a stand-in for Lugosi, even though Mason was taller than Lugosi and bore no resemblance to him.

Nicholas Colasanto

Am I the only one who missed the lovable 'Coach' from Cheers? Colasanto died in 1985 of a heart attack while starring on the hit sitcom as Coach Ernie Pantusso. The character was killed off and actor Woody Harrelson took over the dimbulb bartender role the next season.

John Candy

The Second City alum, John Candy died of a heart attack in 1994, while on location in Mexico filming Wagons East!. His few remaining scenes were either not filmed, or were filmed using a stand-in, then re-written not to involve him.

Vic Morrow

A truly tragic tale. Vic Morrow died in an on-set accident in 1982 while filming Twilight Zone - The Movie. Morrow and two child actors (who were working illegally) perished gruesomely when a helicopter lost control. Three different cameras that were rolling caught the footage. Arguably, this accident is the worst movie set disaster. The movie was still released with Morrow's section included, but rewritten to remove that scene.

River Phoenix

While filming the movie Dark Blood, River Phoenix died of a drug overdose in 1993. The film was not completed due to the death of Phoenix shortly before the end of the project and remained unfinished for 19 years. In 2012 and 2013, it was shown at a few film festivals, with George Sluizer providing narration for the roughly four to six missing scenes.

Larry Hagman

Larry Hagman died of complications of acute myeloid leukemia in 2012 while filming the Dallas reboot. His iconic character J.R. Ewing was killed off on the show with a bit of a twist in which J.R. hires someone to kill him but managed to get another character blamed for murder. Never a fan of Dallas, he will also be Major Tony Nelson to me.

Phil Hartman

In 1998 before production began on a fifth season of NewsRadio, Phil Hartman was killed by his wife. Hartman's death is addressed in the first episode of the fifth season, where his character is revealed to have died of a sudden heart attack. He also voiced several characters on The Simpsons, all of which were retired after his death. Classy move!

7 comments:

Ken said...

John Spencer's Leo McGarry...I loved that character. His description of life as an alcoholic in "Let Barlet be Barlet" was just amazing. "I'm an alcoholic, I cannot have just one drink. I don't understand people who can have just one drink."

Sandi said...

One of my favorite characters and favorite actors. Such a loss when he died.

Tom said...

This was a good one, but you missed one I remember clearly because I was a fan of the show. Pete Duel - (Alias Smith and Jones) In the early hours of December 31, 1971, Duel died at his Hollywood Hills home of a self inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Duel's girlfriend, Dianne Ray, was at his home at the time of his death and discovered his body. Ray later told police the two had watched Duel's series Alias Smith and Jones the previous evening. She later went to sleep in another room while Duel stayed up. Sometime after midnight, Duel entered the bedroom, retrieved his revolver and told Ray "I'll see you later." Ray then said she heard a gunshot from another room and discovered Duel's body. According to police, Duel's friends and family said he was depressed about his drinking problem. He had been arrested and pleaded guilty to a DUI accident that injured two people the previous June.[9] Duel's death was later ruled a suicide.[10]

After his death, his role in Alias Smith and Jones was taken over by Roger Davis (previously, the series' narrator). The loss of Duel proved too great; fans were slow to accept Davis, and the series was cancelled in 1973.

Sandi said...

Oh I totally missed this one. Good catch.

Marianne said...

Let's not forget Marty Feldman aka Eye-gore from Young Frankenstein. I also loved alias Smith and Jones, Peter Duel in particular.

Sandi said...

Damn. Yellowbeard! Forgot all about Marty Feldman. I have never seen Alias Smith and Jones.

Marianne said...

I couldn't remember the movie and was too sleepy to look it up. LOL!