A Look at Michael Madsen's 8 Most Iconic Movie Roles, From 'Reservoir Dogs 'to 'Sin City' and More

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Michael Madsen has starred in some of the most memorable projects of all time.
Throughout his 43-year career, Madsen has appeared alongside screen legends like Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis, Samuel L. Jackson and more, and he's collaborated with some of the industry's best directors. Most notably, he frequently worked with Quentin Tarantino, featuring in five of the Oscar winner's 10 films.
On July 3, 2025, Madsen was found unresponsive in his Malibu home and pronounced dead from cardiac arrest at age 67, his reps confirmed to PEOPLE.
"Michael Madsen was one of Hollywood's most iconic actors, who will be missed by many,' wrote his managers and publicist in a statement.
In Madsen's honor, look back on some of his most timeless roles, from Thelma & Louise to the Bond film Die Another Day and more.
Madsen portrayed Jimmy Lennox, the traveling musician boyfriend of Sarandon's Louise, in the 1991 cult classic. Speaking to The After Movie Diner, he revealed that he earned the role by taking Sarandon out for lunch after screenwriter Callie Khouri and director Ridley Scott questioned whether he'd be the right fit for Jimmy.
'We never talked about the movie, we just chatted with each other about everything else in the world, and the next day, they called me up to say, 'Okay, do you want to be Jimmy?' ' he recalled.
In his first project with Tarantino, Madsen starred opposite Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Steve Buscemi and more as ex-convict Vic Vega (also known as Mr. Blonde).
At the Raindance Film Festival in 2014, he credited Tarantino with being 'responsible' for launching his career, calling Reservoir Dogs his 'genesis' as an actor.
A departure from his villainous roles, Madsen played the foster father of Jesse, a 12-year-old orphan who seeks to free the eponymous orca held at an amusement park.
He told The AV Club in 2015, 'I'm glad to have been in it. It was one of those things that kind of balances out my bad guys, you know?"
Opposite Al Pacino and Johnny Depp in the film adaptation of Joseph D. Pistone's autobiography, Madsen took on the role of mafioso Sonny Black. In his career retrospective with The AV Club, he considered Donnie Brasco one of the five best in his filmography — though he refused to read for the role.
'If I am [perfect for the role], then why don't you just give me a contract? Because I don't understand what the whole reasoning is,' he said. Only after he went to New York to meet with Pacino did he receive an offer for the Oscar-nominated spy thriller.
Madsen added, 'Every time I see Donnie Brasco, I appreciate it a little bit more. It was very, very well done. … It's a damned good movie.'
He gave another memorable performance playing NSA chief, Damian Falco, in Die Another Day. The Lee Tamahori-directed film also featured other Hollywood heavyweights, including Pierce Brosnan as James Bond, Halle Berry, Judi Dench, Rosamund Pike, John Cleese, Toby Stephens and more.
Perhaps one of Madsen's biggest roles came in 2003, when he played Budd in Kill Bill. In a 2004 interview, Madsen revealed he was originally slated to play a different role in the film, but Tarantino wound up cutting that part and gave him Budd instead. The actor would reprise the role in Kill Bill: Vol. 2.
In 2005, Madsen was one of many talents, starring in Sin City. Directed by Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, the film was based on the former's comic series of the same name. In addition to Madsen, Sin City also starred Bruce Willis, Clive Owen, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Benicio del Toro, Brittany Murphy and more.
In 2015, Madsen once again reunited with his friend and longtime collaborator Quentin Tarantino for his western The Hateful Eight. 'I think he knows me so well, we don't have to talk a lot about certain things … so it's a symbiotic kind of understanding we have with each other,' he revealed in a behind-the-scenes interview. 'I can't really say there's another director that I have that with.'
They would work together one more time on 2019's Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood.
Read the original article on People