Oscar-nominated British actor Tom Wilkinson, known for his roles in “The Full Monty,” “Michael Clayton” and “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,” has died, his family said. He was 75. In a statement released by his representative on behalf of the family, Wilkinson died suddenly at home on Saturday.
It did not provide further details. Wilkinson was nominated for Best Actor Oscars for his work in the family drama In The Bedroom (2001) and Best Supporting Actor for his role in the 2007 legal thriller Michael Clayton, starring George Clooney.
Many in Britain and elsewhere will remember him as former steel mill foreman Gerald Cooper in the 1997 comedy The Full Monty, about a group of unemployed steelworkers who formed an unlikely group of men. Wilkinson was born in Yorkshire, northern England, in 1948 and spent part of his childhood in Canada.
He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in the 1970s. From “Rush Hour” and “Batman Begins” to “Shakespeare in Love,” “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and “Valkyrie,” he starred in dozens of other TV dramas and movies.
He recently reunited with his Full Monty co-stars Robert Carlyle and Mark Addy in the Disney+ series of the same name. “He will be greatly missed by all who had the pleasure of working with him,” Carlyle said in a statement. “Such an unparalleled performer, a true titan of acting, one of the greatest not only of his own generation, but of any generation.” Wilkinson was recognized for services to drama in 2005 when she was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire.
He also won a 2009 Golden Globe and a 2008 Emmy for his role as Benjamin Franklin in the HBO series John Adams. Wilkinson married actress Diana Hardcastle in 1988. The couple had two daughters.
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