World Movie News: The Last 24 Hours
Tim Curry dies at 80 and the tributes pour in for a career of unforgettable villains, Venice opens its ticket reservations and sad news too for fans of Ghanaian legend Grace Nortey.
Morning all — just two days after saying goodbye to Dolly Parton, Hollywood is mourning another genuine icon this morning. Here’s what happened in the world of movies during the last 24 hours.
Tim Curry dies at 80: The actor best known for playing Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show died Tuesday night at his home in Los Angeles, his longtime manager Marcia Hurwitz confirming he “passed peacefully,” with police finding no evidence of foul play. Curry’s health had declined significantly since a major stroke in 2012 left him unable to walk and reliant on round-the-clock care, though he continued making public appearances right up until last September’s 50th-anniversary Rocky Horror screening, where he spoke candidly about his limitations from a wheelchair. Beyond his signature role, Curry built a genuinely remarkable career playing villains audiences somehow adored anyway: Wadsworth the butler in Clue, the demonic Pennywise in the original It miniseries, Long John Silver in Muppet Treasure Island, the horned Lord of Darkness in Ridley Scott’s Legend, and the suspicious hotel concierge Mr. Hector, forever trying and failing to catch Kevin McCallister out, in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, my own personal favourite role of his. The way he manages to purr “I’m sorry sir, but you are mistaken” in the hilarious shower scene is comedy gold. He was also a three-time Tony nominee and released three studio albums across his career. Longtime friend Michael McKean offered one of the first public tributes, recalling their final conversation as filled with “life and love and laughter.” A genuinely singular career, gone at 80.
Venice throws open its ticket reservations: As we previewed yesterday, online reservations for the 83rd Venice Film Festival officially opened today, ahead of Danny Boyle’s Ink opening the festival on 2nd September. This year’s edition, running through to the 12th, brings a genuinely stacked competition lineup including new work from Martin McDonagh, Werner Herzog, Hirokazu Kore-eda and Lee Chang-dong, plus George Clooney and Ellen Burstyn both picking up Golden Lion lifetime achievement honours.
And a further sad farewell: Ghanaian screen veteran Grace Nortey has also died, aged 89, remembered for roles across a long career including Matters of the Heart, Sinking Sands and, more recently, an appearance in the Oscar-nominated Beasts of No Nation. A quieter loss than today’s headline news, but a significant one for West African cinema all the same.
A real downer of a day. Let’s hope the rest of the week’s news brings some lighter relief.
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