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Lance Reddick, who has appeared in major TV series like “The Wire,” “Fringe,” “Bosh” and movies like the “John Wick” franchise, premiering next week with “John Wick: Chapter 4” , died of natural causes Friday morning, Variety confirmed with its representatives. He was 60.
He was found dead Friday morning at his home in Los Angeles’ Studio City, according to TMZ, which first reported the news.
In the upcoming “John Wick: Chapter 4,” which hits theaters March 24, Reddick reprises his role as Charon, the janitor at the Continental Hotel in New York City who appeared in all four entries. Charon teamed up with Keanu Reeve’s non-retired assassin, most notably taking care of John’s new dog in the second episode and getting in on the shooting action in the third film. Reddick was also set to appear in the upcoming “Ballerina” spin-off, starring Ana de Armas.
“The world of Wick would not be what it is without Lance Reddick and the unparalleled depth he brought to Charon’s humanity and imperturbable charisma,” Lionsgate said in a statement. “Lance leaves an indelible legacy and a hugely impressive body of work, but we will remember him as our dear, fun-loving friend and caretaker. We are stunned and heartbroken, and our deepest condolences go out to his beloved family and his fans around the world.”
MORE: Lance Reddick Remembered by ‘The Wire’ Cast: ‘A Man of Great Power and Grace’
Known for playing hardened police chiefs, Reddick was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on June 7, 1962. He studied music composition and earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Rochester. He moved to Boston in the 1980s and received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Yale in 1994. His first major TV role came in Season 4 of HBO’s prison drama “Oz” in 2000. He played Detective Johnny Basil, an undercover cop who tries to stop the drug trade, but soon becomes addicted himself and kills a crooked cop by putting him in a pushing elevator shaft. After being sent to Oz, Basil is stabbed to death by Seth Gilliam’s character Clayton Hughes.
HBO kept Reddick around and later cast him as Baltimore Police Lieutenant Cedric Daniels, one of the leads, on “The Wire” in 2002. He had previously auditioned for the roles of Bubbles (which went to Andre Royo) and William “Bunk”. Moreland (Wendell Pierce). Daniels was in charge of the narcotics division and slowly rose through the ranks during the show’s five seasons, frequently butting heads with his superiors. In the show’s finale, he resigned as a commissioner and became a criminal lawyer.
After “The Wire” ended in 2008, Reddick joined “Fringe” later that year as Phillip Broyles, a Homeland Security special agent and head of the Fringe division. The group investigated cases related to fringe science, pseudoscience, and alternate timelines. In 2014, he was cast as another police chief, but this time in Amazon’s “Bosch” series, which ends in 2021. He played Deputy Chief Irvin Irving and was nominated for a Saturn Award for the role, having earned two nominations for “Fringe.”
More recently, last year Reddick played the role of Albert Wesker in the short-lived Netflix series “Resident Evil,” an adaptation of the hit zombie video game. He also provided voice work for Season 2 of Amazon’s “The Legend of Vox Machina,” which came out in January. His other voice roles include the villain Sylens in the two hit PlayStation games “Horizon: Zero Dawn” and “Horizon: Forbidden West” released last year, plus voicing Commander Zavala in the long-running “Destiny” franchise.
Reddick was cast as the Greek god Zeus in Disney+’s highly anticipated series ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’, based on Rick Riordan’s hit teen books. His other upcoming roles include Hulu’s “White Men Can’t Jump” remake, due May 19, Danny DeVito’s “St. Sebastian”, Netflix’s Shirley Chisholm biopic “Shirley”, Showtime’s “The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial” and the space drama “Apteros.”
Throughout his nearly 30-year career, he also appeared in “Lost,” “CSI: Miami,” “American Horror Story: Coven,” “The Blacklist,” “One Night in Miami,” “Angel Has Fallen,” and “Godzilla vs. Kong.”
Reddick is survived by his wife, Stephanie Reddick, and children, Yvonne Nicole Reddick and Christopher Reddick. Donations in his memory can be made to momcares.org in Baltimore, his hometown.