RIP Pete Postlethwaite

Yesterday, the entertainment world lost a considerable talent in Pete Postlethwaite. The British-born actor received an Oscar nomination in 1994 for his portrayal of Giuseppe Conlon in THE NAME OF THE FATHER and went on to work with some of the biggest directors in Hollywood. He did two movies with Steven Spielberg, who reportedly called Postlethwaite "the best actor in the world". I'd have to concur that he's certainly up there.

I didn't even know he was sick. He's never been the most healthy looking of actors, so this news came as a very unpleasant surprise. Postlethwaite has been cropping up in all sorts of things this year including CLASH OF THE TITANS for which his "someone's going to have to take a stand speech" was prominently featured in the trailers and ended up being one of the film's only redeeming qualities. He also appeared in Christopher Nolan's INCEPTION as Cillian Murphey's ailing father and in THE TOWN as an ultra-intimidating gangster/florist.

Though maybe not the most respectable title on his filmography, I will always remember my introduction to the actor through his performance in THE LOST WORLD as big-game hunter Roland Tembo. As a child and huge fan of JURASSIC PARK, I was somewhat let down by the follow-up, but I was very much so drawn to the intense and interesting character Postlethwaite had cultivated.

The actor's final performance will be as Karl in the upcoming Nick Hamm film KILLING BONO, set to be released some time this year. It's sad to imagine how many great performances were still ahead of Postlethwaite; his loss was entirely too soon.