Actor Reg E. Cathey has passed away at the age of 59. Cathey, who was best known for his roles on House of Cards and The Wire, passed away in his New York home after battling with lung cancer. The news of Cathey's passing was shared by The Wire creator David Simon, who eulogized the actor on Twitter:
Cathey played the political operative Norman Wilson on The Wire, and first made his appearance in the series back in Season 4. Though he wasn't there from the start of the show, Cathey must have made an impact on those he worked with to have David Simon speak so highly of him. HBO also memorialized the actor on Twitter, and stated the network was celebrating the "victorious life," he lived.
Netflix, who also played host to one of Reg E. Cathey's more memorable performances, released a statement calling Cathey "the kindest man," and wished his family well following his passing, according to The BBC. Cathey played BBQ Shack owner turned White House worker Freddy Hayes on Netflix's flagship original series House of Cards. Cathey gained award show recognition for the role in 2015 with an Emmy for outstanding guest actor in a drama. It would be the only award win for Cathey in an acting career that spanned over 30 years. The actor made many friends in those 3 decades, and a few of those friends took to social media to say some kind words:
Samuel L. Jackson was not the only actor to eulogize Reg E. Cathey on the platform, as Jackson was joined by folks like Bobby Cannavale, Chris Rock, Mike Colter, and Kirk Acevedo. All had nothing but nice things to say about Cathey, as quite a few mentioned his brilliance as an actor as well as his warmness on set. Others spoke of his talent as a theatre actor, calling attention to his role in the Broadway production of The Green Bird in 2000. Cathey studied theater at the University of Michigan and the Yale School of Drama, but his love of the stage has been noted to start as far back as high school.
Reg. E Cathey was born in Huntsville, Alabama, but spent a bulk of his childhood in West Germany, as his father was an Army Colonel officer. Cathey returned to Alabama in his teens, and would eventually break into television acting in 1984 in the television movie A Doctor's Story. That first role would lead to many other guest television roles on shows like Star Trek: The Next Generation, ER, and Law & Order. Cathey also had a solid career in film and appeared as Freeze in The Mask, Dr. Santiago in Se7en, and Deetee in Tank Girl as well as many other projects.
CinemaBlend sends our thoughts and condolences to the family of Reg E. Cathey in the time following his passing.
