(CNN) — Lance Reddick, an actor known for his portrayal of Cedric Daniels on “The Wire” and for his work on the “John Wick” franchise, has died, his representative, Mia Hansen, said.
He was 60 years old.
Hansen said Reddick passed away suddenly Friday morning “of natural causes.”
“Lance will be sorely missed,” he said.
An actor whose captivating presence often led him to roles that required intensity and gravitas, Reddick began his career in the ’90s, with credits on shows like “New York Undercover” and “The West Wing.”
As a teenager growing up in Baltimore, he intended to become a musician, he once told The Guardian. He began acting as a means to support his young family and in hopes of laying the groundwork for a musical career.
He began landing roles in regional theater, and at age 29, he applied — and was accepted — to Yale University to study theater, eventually graduating.
In New York, he first auditioned for “Wire” creator David Simon for his project “The Corner,” an HBO miniseries that ran two years before Simon’s “The Wire.”
While Reddick wasn’t on that project, he landed his first regular role on HBO’s “Oz,” in which he played an undercover detective posing as an inmate.
Eventually, Simon cast him as Narcotics Unit Lieutenant Daniels, a prominent role for Reddick.
Although “The Wire” was never a huge success, its critical and industry acclaim was very high.
“I thought it would be a success, but I didn’t anticipate that it would take so long to catch on or that it would become this phenomenon,” Reddick told The Guardian. “Or that it would be so ignored by the industry. That really blew me away, because I knew how good we were; we all did it.”
Reddick worked almost non-stop afterward, with a memorable role in “Lost” and regular roles on Fox’s sci-fi series “Fringe,” Amazon’s “Bosch” and, most recently, Netflix’s version of “Resident Evil.”
Reddick told the Los Angeles Times in 2019 that his “Lost” character was supposed to become a series regular, but plans changed when he booked a regular role on “Fringe.” However, he said, even his brief stint on one of the biggest shows on television at the time introduced him to a new kind of fame.
“That was the first time the fans were really weird. I was living in New York at the time, and it seemed like everyone would stop me to talk about “Lost.” I went from a small, niche notoriety to being fully recognizable,” he commented.
Lance Reddick as Charon in ‘John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum’. Lionsgate/Cobalt/Shutterstock
In addition to the “John Wick” films, his supporting film work includes “One Night in Miami,” “Godzilla vs. Kong,” and the remake “White Men Can’t Jump.”
Despite his trademark intensity, Reddick also showed a lighter side, guest-starring on the sitcom “Young Sheldon” and the sketch show “Key and Peele.”
He is slated to appear in the fourth “John Wick” movie, which opens in theaters next weekend.
Reddick is survived by his wife Stephanie Reddick and their children Yvonne Nicole Reddick and Christopher Reddick.
Memorial donations can be made to momcares.org in Baltimore, according to her representative.
