Oscar-winning actor William Hurt, the star of Broadcast News and Kiss of the Spider Woman, died Sunday at age 71 after fighting prostate cancer for several years, his son posted on social media.
Hurt was most recently recognized for his portrayal of Gen. Thaddeus Ross in The Incredible Hulk (2008), a role he maintained throughout the Marvel Universe for Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), and Black Widow (2021).
The actor began his career at Juilliard, which launched him onto stages across New York City. He found quick success in film after transitioning to the big screen in 1980 with his debut film, Altered States. In 1986, he received his first Academy Award nomination—and win—for Best Actor for Kiss of the Spider Woman. He went on to receive the nomination for the following two years for Children of a Lesser God (1987), and Broadcast News (1988).
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The Oscar attention for these genre-spanning films—Kiss a drama, Lesser God a romance, and News a comedy—proved the dynamism of Hurt’s skill. That dynamism carried him through his decades-long career as he appeared in teen romances like Tuck Everlasting (2002), psychological thrillers like The Village (2004), and even period pieces like Jane Eyre (1996).
Hurt continued receiving top recognition for his work throughout his career, snagging his fourth Academy Award nomination for his supporting role in David Cronenberg’s 2005 thriller A History of Violence.
Co-stars throughout Hurt’s career have taken to social media to mourn the star’s death. Russell Crowe, who starred in Robin Hood (2010) alongside Hurt, who played William Marshall, acknowledged Hurt’s dedication to the craft: “On Robin Hood, I was aware of his reputation for asking character based questions, so I had compiled a file on the life of William Marshall. He sought me out when he arrived on set. I handed him the stack. Not sure if I’ve ever seen a bigger smile. RIP.”
Christine Lahti, who starred in The Doctor (1991) alongside Hurt, praised her former co-star, describing him as “brilliant,” adding that “his mind just would never stop.”
But as Hurt’s mid-’80s career earned him top accolades and praise, his personal life would later become a subject of controversy. In her 2010 memoir I’ll Scream Later, Hurt’s former Lesser God co-star and girlfriend, Marlee Matlin, described both her working and personal relationship with Hurt as toxic and abusive.
To audiences, the relationship between the stars seemed idyllic. Both were nominated for Oscars for Lesser God, and Hurt even announced Matlin as winner for Best Actress and presented her with the award. The couple shared a kiss as the audience erupted into applause.
But in the limousine following the illustrious evening, Matlin says Hurt berated her, allegedly saying, “What makes you think you deserve it? There are hundreds of actors who have worked for years for the recognition you just got handed to you. Think about that.”
In I’ll Scream Later, Matlin alleges that the abuse was physical and sexual as well as emotional throughout the course of their relationship. In one encounter, she describes visiting Hurt as he filmed Broadcast News. Hurt allegedly came home drunk and violent. “The next thing I knew he’d pulled me out of the bed, screaming at me, shaking me,” Matlin writes in her memoir. “Then he threw me on the bed, started ripping off his clothes and mine.”
As reported by Deadline, which was first to report the news of his death, Hurt announced he had been diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer in May 2018, which eventually spread to his bones.
When researchers at Berkeley debuted a chemo-alternative cancer treatment in 2018, Hurt attended the unveiling, claiming the new medicine had saved his life. The treatment, Side Effect-Free (SEF) Chemotherapy, was developed to only target a certain type of white blood cell so that patients did not experience the typical, debilitating effects of full chemo.
“I didn’t want to hear the word chemo out of your mouth. I had fought tooth and nail for five years to change my life so that word didn’t happen to me,” Hurt said at the program as reported by the Bay Area station 5 KPIX. “Here it was and I was really upset.”
Hurt’s son Will, one of his four children, said his father died Sunday of natural causes.
