William Hurt

William McChord Hurt (March 20, 1950 – March 13, 2022) was an American actor. Known for his performances on stage and screen, he received various awards including an Academy Award, BAFTA Award and Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor.

Hurt studied at the Juilliard School and began acting on stage in the 1970s. His film debut was in Ken Russell's science-fiction feature ''Altered States'', released in 1980, for which he received a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year. In 1981, he had a leading role in the neo-noir ''Body Heat'', co-starring Kathleen Turner. His starring roles in a series of critically acclaimed films garnered three consecutive nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actor: ''Kiss of the Spider Woman'' (1985), which he won; ''Children of a Lesser God'' (1986), and ''Broadcast News'' (1987). During this time he also starred in ''The Big Chill'' (1983), ''The Accidental Tourist'' (1988), ''Alice'' (1990), and ''One True Thing'' (1998).

Hurt earned his fourth Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in David Cronenberg's crime thriller ''A History of Violence'' (2005). His later character roles include ''A.I. Artificial Intelligence'' (2001), ''The Village'' (2004), ''Syriana'' (2005), ''The Good Shepherd'' (2006), ''Mr. Brooks'' (2007), ''Into the Wild'' (2007), ''The Yellow Handkerchief'' (2008), and ''Robin Hood'' (2010). In 2008, he portrayed Thaddeus Ross in ''The Incredible Hulk'', a role he reprised in other Marvel Cinematic Universe films until his final appearance in ''Black Widow'' (2021).

Hurt's various television projects included the FX legal drama ''Damages'', which earned him a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. In 2011, he portrayed Henry Paulson in the HBO movie ''Too Big to Fail'' and received another Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie.

On stage, Hurt appeared in off-Broadway productions including ''Henry V'', ''Fifth of July'', ''Richard II'' and ''A Midsummer Night's Dream''; and made his Broadway debut in David Rabe's dark comedy ''Hurlyburly'', for which he received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play. Provided by Wikipedia