Screen legend Tim Curry has passed away at the age of 80. Curry had suffered a near-fatal stroke nearly fifteen years ago that placed him into an early retirement. The stroke had impacted his memory and mobility, making acting a far more difficult venture than it previously had been.
Curry in Clue. Credit: Paramount.
Curry garnered fame in Rocky Horror Picture Show as Frank N Furter, a role he reprised in 1975 for the film version after having starred in the production on Broadway. He had worked theatre in London for years before getting his big screen break, but Rocky Horror became a staple for midnight showings in theatres around the country for generations, normalizing not just drag culture, but gender nonconformity in the process while launching major A-List talent such as Curry and Susan Sarandon as part of the cult classic. Outside of 1982’s adaptation of Annie, Curry primarily starred in cult classics such as Legend opposite Tom Cruise, and Clue, a film based on the boardgame that had four different endings and would eventually become a beloved staple on home video, but was, at the time, a box office disappointment. Curry became a household name, however, in 1990 starring in the miniseries adaptation of Stephen King’s It, where he portrayed Pennywise the dancing clown, and in John McTiernan’s Hunt for Red October. He followed that up with Oscar, a Sylvester Stallone comedy most notable for an early role of Marisa Tomei, and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, the latter becoming a beloved Christmas tradition for familes across the world.
Curry also had a very eclectic yet integral voice acting career. His turn as Ben Ravencroft in Scooby Doo and the Witches Ghost is perhaps the most notable, but Curry ended up doing voice work for Fern Gully: The Last Rainforest, The Legend of Prince Valiant, Rugrats, The Wild Thornberries, Garfield, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and other franchises. Following his stroke, he continued to do voice work.
Over the course of his career, Curry won an Emmy, had been nominated for two Tony Awards and a Grammy. Curry, for many, represented the first actor in many people’s childhoods that showed them a villain can be just as fun as the protaganist, bringing a level of over-the-top physicality to match either how menacing his voice can be or how campy his theatrics could be, depending on the role.
DSR wishes the best to Curry’s family.