
Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill star Michael Madsen dies aged 67
He is believed to have died of natural causes and Madsen's manager Ron Smith said cardiac arrest was the apparent cause.
Madsen's career spanned more than 300 credits stretching back to the early 1980s, many in low-budget films.
But his most memorable screen moment may have been the sadistic torture of a captured police officer — while dancing to Stealers Wheel's Stuck In The Middle With You — as Mr Blonde in 1992's Reservoir Dogs.
He would become a Tarantino regular, appearing in the Kill Bill films and The Hateful Eight.
'In the last two years Michael Madsen has been doing some incredible work with independent film including upcoming feature films Resurrection Road, Concessions and Cookbook For Southern Housewives, and was really looking forward to this next chapter in his life,' his managers Smith and Susan Ferris and publicist Liz Rodriguez said in a statement.
They added that he 'was one of Hollywood's most iconic actors, who will be missed by many'.
During a handprint ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre in November 2020, Madsen reflected on his first visit to Hollywood in the early 1980s.
'I got out and I walked around and I looked and I wondered if there were some day some way that that was going to be a part of me.
'And I didn't know because I didn't know what I was going to do at that point with myself,' he said.
'I could have been a bricklayer. I could have been an architect. I could have been a garbage man. I could have been nothing. But I got lucky. I got lucky as an actor.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

The National
19 hours ago
- The National
Author Andrew Meehan on 10 things that changed his life
The trip doesn't seem so momentous now, but it felt like quite the schlep then, and is perhaps the reason why, nowadays, I'd do anything to avoid a long commute. Childhood is so busy! But in that train ride – 40 minutes there, 40 minutes home – I'd read poetry, think about girls, bands, exams. I'd fidget, doze and dream of a life that could be made from words. Two: M&S prawn sandwiches MY dad, an architect for the Bank of Ireland, was older than many of my friends' parents. When he retired, in my first year of secondary school, it was a nice thing to come home for lunch that he'd make for me. Forgive me if I'm misremembering or just imagining this (did M&S even sell prawn sandwiches in the early 1980s?), but one day, instead of making me scrambled eggs or a cheese omelette, my dad bought me a prawn sandwich for lunch. He might even have had it out it on a plate. This was, after all, a man who once ate a McDonald's with a knife and fork. All I can say is that it felt pretty upscale for a 12-year-old and, now, whenever I have the urge to feel fancy, I head to M&S for a prawn sandwich. Three: David Wasco, production designer IN the 1990s, I worked mainly as a TV researcher. I always felt I was doing this job by accident (my bosses might have felt the same) and at some point, I found myself in Los Angeles working on a Channel 4 documentary to coincide with the first television broadcast of Reservoir Dogs. As part of the programme, we spoke to all of Tarantino's collaborators, many of whom were in pre-production with him on his film Jackie Brown. As Quentin Tarantino's production designer, David Wasco, took time out of his day to talk about his work on Reservoir Dogs, I saw that he was designing imaginary branding for soft drinks and burger wrappers for use in Jackie Brown. To think that people worked so hard on seemingly inconsequential background objects! But it's those small objects that make a world, and really from that day on, I knew I wanted to be a part of a profession where people spend their days taking such care in making new realities. Four: Steven Purvis, tailor LET'S stick with making. When I got up on my feet in the world of work, it felt very grown-up to be paying rent, and paying bills. Perhaps I should have been saving up for a deposit for a flat, but whenever I had a spare few quid, I'd go and visit tailor Steven Purvis at his workshop on Chancellor Street in Partick. Steven had made a pattern for jackets like the ones worn by SNCF train drivers, and I had them in many colours and fabrics. After that, he made me piles of suits and coats, most of which I still wear. Our relationship was oddly formal and informal. Once, when measuring me for something new, he wrote down my measurements with a smoky mutter of, 'sir is a fat bastard'. Steven isn't around anymore but our conversations about ticket pockets and pleats (yes or no?) opened me up to the interplay of intent, function, purpose, and pleasure that has carried into the way I think about making art. Five: Paddy Higson and Simon Perry, film producers I WORKED for a long time in script development for film and television. While I don't think they ever met, I had two very influential bosses in two different countries in Paddy Higson (Scotland) and Simon Perry (Ireland). Film producers, both, as well as proper enablers of emerging talent. Paddy died this year, and I will always think of her values, her bravery, her patience with a problem, her hospitality, her belief in others. She was so much more than her work, but whenever I get stuck at mine, I try to draw on her wisdom, which seemed never-ending. It's that feeling I get from my former boss at the Irish Film Board (Screen Ireland). In years and years of meetings with Simon, I could always count on his rigour and warmth; I'd grow to depend on his long-range vision. As Paddy Higson was, Simon Perry is the kind of person who takes real pleasure in the achievements of others. Six: Sheridans Cheesemongers, Galway GALWAY is a town that's hospitable to newcomers and in the early 2000s, I was perhaps just another reveller who turned a long weekend into a stay of a few years. I lived there when I worked at Screen Ireland; perhaps the first time in my life that I hadn't been in Dublin thinking I should be in Glasgow, or in Glasgow wondering about Dublin. But Galway is not the kind of town to concern itself with others. For me, the place starts and ends with cheesemonger Seamus Sheridan, and when I found a home from home in Sheridans wine bar, I found a room that I'd happily sit in until the end of time. I also learned about choosing the right wine to go with the right food (whatever it is you feel like drinking with whatever it is you feel like eating). Seven: Le Baratin, Paris PARIS used to be where I went to have a bad time, but I did get the hang of it in the end. Le Baratin, on a side street in Belleville, is where I first tasted natural wine (which I no longer drink but am still boring about). I can remember feeling out my first mouthful of Le Rouchefer by René and Agnes Mosse, a wine I'm still puzzling over 15 years hence. What is it about the place? You could say that the owners, Raquel Carena and Phillip Pinoteau, have made their own mythology. But Le Baratin won't be there forever. Every time I visit, I do so with a ritual, almost pathological yearning, which is to say that I take a moment to entertain the possibility that this will be my last time there. I am like that around anything meaningful and precious. It can't last forever, it just can't. Eight: Scottish book people IF it's getting harder to find the Paddy Higsons and Simon Perrys in the screen world, I'm nowadays more drawn to book people. Slightly more gentle, slightly more civilised, slightly more broke! Glasgow has Mount Florida books, Bigglestones on Glassford Street, and the Waterstones might be the last remaining reason to visit Sauchiehall Street. Last week I went with my friend Lisa Boden to a SPAM magazine poetry event in the Doublet bar in the west end. If I was there to hear the TS Eliot winner Peter Gizzi, it was a privilege to discover new work from Heather Rankin, Sam Rodilosso, and Tim Tim Cheng. A life-giving night. Nine: Pluscarden Monastery, Elgin SPEAKING of life-giving, last year I went on a retreat to Pluscarden Abbey, near Elgin. The meanness of some religious men is very familiar to many people with a Catholic education, particularly an Irish one, but I found only kindness from the Benedictines of Pluscarden. Life in the monastery is not as pleasureless as you might expect. While the religious life isn't necessarily defined by second helpings of fish pie and vegetables from the garden, so much of what is useful and reflective in the world can be provided by the way in which these monks go about their days. The brethren sing for hours at a time, offering up hymns as pure as nothingness. Pluscarden is an open-hearted place and I found wonder and release there. 10 The Herald building on Albion Street I AM typing these words in a peaceful room overlooking the old Ramshorn graveyard in Glasgow's Merchant City. I bought the place last year. As I did it up, from top to toe, was I thinking of the kind of care taken by the likes of Steven Purvis and David Wasco? Maybe. But I do often think of the morning in April 1995, when I came along to the doorway of the printing presses in this same building to pick up an article I'd written for the Glasgow Herald about a Las Vegas-set documentary I'd been involved in. This was my first publication of any significance, and the paper felt so precious in my hands. That was 30 years ago. Is this to say that, after four novels, life has come in a perfect circle? That would be too neat. I'd much rather think of it being a circle drawn with a more wayward hand. Best Friends, the latest novel by Andrew Meehan, is published by Muswell Press.


Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
Michael Madsen's official cause of death confirmed by doctor after Kill Bill icon's shock passing aged 67
Harrowing new details have emerged in Michael Madsen's cause of death days after his passing at his Malibu home aged 67. The legendary actor was found 'unresponsive' at his Malibu home early Thursday morning. Madsen was later pronounced dead at the home. Last week the Kill Bill star's manager claimed that Madsen had died from 'cardiac arrest', with his cardiologist now revealing his official cause of death to be heart failure. Heart disease and alcoholism will be named as contributing factors, the unnamed doctor told NBC LA. No autopsy will be conducted because the cardiologist who was treating Madsen signed the death certificate. The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department considers the case closed with no foul play indicated. The death is listed as from natural causes. Madsen's lawyer said the actor - known for his roles in Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill - was battling an alcohol addiction before he tragically died. Hours after his death, obtained photos of Madsen's heartbroken family — including his estranged wife DeAnna — gathering outside his house. A man who looked to be Madsen's son Max, 31, consoled DeAnna while standing in the home's driveway as more family members arrived. Madsen's eldest son Christian, 35, and his youngest son Luke, 19, also appeared to be at the scene. A statement from the star's representatives to read: 'In the last two years Michael Madsen has been doing some incredible work with independent film including upcoming feature films Resurrection Road, Concessions and Cookbook for Southern Housewives, and was really looking forward to this next chapter in his life. 'Madsen was also preparing to release a new book called Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems. 'Michael Madsen was one of Hollywood's most iconic actors, who will be missed by many.' Madsen was best known for his frequent collaborations with director Quentin Tarantino, starring in Reservoir Dogs (1992), Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2004), The Hateful Eight (2015), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019). He also starred in 1997's Donnie Brasco as Sonny Black. Madsen is survived by his five children, estranged wife DeAnna and his actress sister Virginia Madsen. His son Hudson died by suicide in 2022 aged 26. Perry Wander, who has represented the star for 20 years, said the Kill Bill icon had 'many struggles'. 'I just spoke to Michael two days ago,' Wander told Daily Mail, admitting that 'I knew he was not well.' 'Michael was suffering from the effects of alcoholism. He had multiple stints in and out of rehab. He struggled to maintain his sobriety. He was not happy about his life.' Madsen was also facing a crippling legal battle with his estranged wife, which saw the pair fighting over child support and other finances, his lawyer claimed. 'I blame her for putting in the screws over his last years of life,' Wander said, alleging the legal battle, which saw his passport be 'maliciously revoked', impacted his ability to travel and work abroad. 'Michael lived a life of regrets - those regrets being his two marriages,' he added. Virginia paid emotional tribute to Madsen in a statement to Variety, which read: 'My brother Michael has left the stage. He was thunder and velvet. Mischief wrapped in tenderness. A poet disguised as an outlaw. A father, a son, a brother — etched in contradiction, tempered by love that left its mark. 'We're not mourning a public figure. We're not mourning a myth — but flesh and blood and ferocious heart. Who stormed through life loud, brilliant, and half on fire. Who leaves us echoes — gruff, brilliant, unrepeatable — half legend, half lullaby. 'I'll miss our inside jokes, the sudden laughter, the sound of him. I'll miss the boy he was before the legend; I miss my big brother. Thank you to everyone reaching out with love and memory. In time, we'll share how we plan to celebrate his life — but for now, we stay close, and let the silence say what words can't.' He was first wed to Georganne LaPiere, half-sister of singer and actress Cher from 1984-1988. He welcomed a daughter named Jessica with Dana Mechling. He was married to Jeannine Bisignano from 1991 to 1995. They have two sons, Christian and Max. In 1996, he married DeAnna. Together they had three sons, Luke, Kalvin and Hudson. His death comes 11 months after his domestic violence case - where he was accused of shoving wife DeAnna - was dismissed due to 'insufficient evidence.' 'We are thrilled that Michael Madsen is able to put this behind him and look forward to our continued collaboration with more great things coming from this veteran and respected actor,' his representative said at the time. The star was arrested for domestic violence amid claims he got physical with his spouse. He also allegedly locked her out of their home, which is located in the Los Angeles area. The Reservoir Dogs star was given a misdemeanor domestic violence charge at the time. He also had to spend part of his weekend in jail, before posting a $20,000 bond. Days later in a statement to THR, Madsen's lawyer Perry Wander insisted that his client was 'not guilty of domestic violence.' A representative for the star confirmed the incident saying: 'It was a disagreement between Michael and his wife, which we hope resolves positively for them both.' Madsen filed for divorce from DeAnna in September 2024 - and in court papers obtained by he accused his estranged wife of driving their son to die by suicide 'by her neglect, drinking and alcoholism.' A month later, he issued a regretful Instagram statement apologizing for his claims and denying he had wanted to end their marriage. He said: 'Losing a child is the hardest and most painful experience that can happen in this world. I deeply apologize for not correcting this earlier but I love my wife and our other 4 children and have no desire for divorce or blame. 'She had absolutely nothing to do with what happened to our son. It was a horrible loss and choice that was made for reasons that truly cannot ever be known because the person is gone, I don't think my son is dead , I think he escaped from a life that didn't make sense anymore.' It wasn't Madsen's first brush with the law. In 2022 the Hollywood actor was arrested for trespassing at a luxury house from which he was evicted, reported. It was a $5.3 million Malibu mansion just across the Pacific Coast Highway from La Costa Beach. The star's final Instagram post in March 2025 saw him model for Hollywood Times Magazine A source exclusively told at the time: 'Michael had been living at the house since last year, but the lease was in another person's name.' The house was leased out by another person and several thousand dollars were owed in back rent, has learned. The owner had tried for the past two years to get the tenants evicted, but because of the moratorium on evictions on account of Covid, it took several months to go through the legal process. His arrest came just a month after his son, US Army Sgt. Hudson Madsen shot himself dead on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, where he was stationed with the 25th Infantry Division. Hudson was an Afghan war vet. Hudson's death came a week after his wife Carlie underwent surgery to remove a tumor from her breast. 'I am in shock as my son, whom I just spoke with a few days ago, said he was happy - my last text from him was 'I love you dad,'' he told the Los Angeles Times. 'I didn't see any signs of depression. It's so tragic and sad. I'm just trying to make sense of everything and understand what happened.' Madsen said his son's marriage was 'going strong' and he had recently completed his first tour in the U.S. Army. 'He had typical life challenges that people have with finances, but he wanted a family. He was looking towards his future, so its mind-blowing. I just can't grasp what happened.' Madsen has requested a full military investigation into his son's death. The actor thinks 'the officers and rank and file were shaming' Hudson for wanting therapy. He believes this stopped him from seeking help for mental health issues he had been keeping to himself. In 2019, the actor was axed from a $100,000 role in movie Confessions of a Serial Killer after crashing his Land Rover into a pole and subsequently being arrested for DUI. He was later sentenced to four days in jail. In 2012 he was also arrested for DUI after driving erratically but struck a plea deal that involved attending AA meetings in lieu of more severe punishment. However, after Madsen failed to attend his court ordered Alcoholics Anonymous meetings his probation was revoked. That same year he was arrested at his Malibu home after allegedly getting into a physical fight with his son after catching him smoking marijuana. The actor was being held in jail on $100,000 bail after being charged with child endangerment with cruelty to a child: a felony charge, which means it is considered a crime of high seriousness. He did not face any charges after his arrest for suspected child endangerment.


Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Charlie's Angel icon joins Devil Wears Prada 2 star-studded cast
Devil Wears Prada 2 is making headlines for its come-back cast, but its not just our favourites. Charlie's Angel, Pauline Chalamet, Timmy's sister, and this Bridgerton star are said to appear too Charlie's Angels actress Lucy Liu is confirmed to join the new cast of Devil Wears Prada sequel, and following in her footsteps is a rumour we hope comes true - that Bridgerton's leading star could be cast too. With an impressive CV of stunning looks over the decades, film star and Charlie's Angel Liu is set to join the already impressive cast made up of Meryl Streep as Miranda Priestly; Y2K's sweetheart Anne Hathaway as Andy Sachs; Emily Blunt as Emily Charlton; and Stanley Tucci as Nigel Kipling. Liu's famed roles range from blockbuster hit Kill Bill to 2002's Chicago musical. Her presence in fashion can be sampled by her Midas-touched Marchesa gown at the Red One carpet in 2024, to the embellished red look of dreams - a showstopper from the Oscars, 2000. Safe to say, Lucy Liu belongs in the fictional world of Runway. Shockingly, many fans of the original have shared their distaste to Liu's inclusion. One Reddit user wrote: "There are too many famous people in this movie already. It's giving He's Just Not That into You, or Valentine's Day". Another user declared "they're gonna ruin this movie," talking of the Hollywood stars now confirmed as cast. A third agreed, adding the sequel now "looks like a cash grabbing scam with so many A listers". For more stories like this subscribe to our weekly newsletter, The Weekly Gulp, for a curated roundup of trending stories, poignant interviews, and viral lifestyle picks from The Mirror's Audience U35 team delivered straight to your inbox. With the sister of the internet's (and Kylie Jenner's) boyfriend, Pauline Chalamet, also being signed in to production, rumours have been circulation of other up-and-coming actresses joining Prada's ranks - fan favourite being none other than Netflix's Viscountess Bridgerton. Feasibly Bridgerton's most popular lead, talks of Simone Ashley entering Miranda Priestley's stratosphere are more than a hushed whisper. Deadline reports sources have confirmed Lady Kathani (Kate) Bridgerton is leaving the Ton for New York's fashion capital. Recently making headlines for F1, the actress is a current PR jackpot for new films after featuring in Disney's The Little Mermaid as Indira and Olivia Hanan in Sex Education. Devil Wears Prada 2 will be a response to the current decline in print publishing, said to trail Priestley's career as she now faces the alleged death of traditional magazine publishing as she knew it. Variety states that Blunt's Emily now a high-up executive for a luxury group will shift the power balance by means of advertising dollars that Miranda needs to survive. The film is set to hit cinemas on May 1, 2026.