Lance Reddick, who rose to fame playing the police chief in the Baltimore crime drama “The Wire,” later went on to star in the “John Wick” film franchise and the Amazon series “Bosch.” He is 60 years old.
His death was confirmed by his publicist Mia Hansen. No reason was given.
In 1996, Mr. Reddick had some success as a stage actor.
Even then he often played law enforcement, and would do so when his breakthrough came in 2002: He played Lt. Cedric Daniels, the principled head of the investigative division, in the sprawling HBO series “The Wire.” It was praised for its realistic and often downbeat portrayal of policing, crime, education and other aspects of life in Baltimore.
The series ran for five seasons and is widely considered to have brought a new level of sophistication to police dramas and television in general.
“Since ‘The Wire,'” he said in a video interview on “The IMDB Show,” “I’ve played a lot of intimidating authority figures who talk a lot.”
In the Fox sci-fi drama “Fringe,” which debuted in 2008, he played Homeland Security agent Philip Broyles. In the crime drama “Bosh”, which ran from 2014 to 2021, he played a police officer. In the film “White House Down” (2013), about the attack on the White House, he was the Deputy Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
In 2010, he told Australia’s Queensland Times, “Serious is not what I’m trying to do.”
He stepped away from law enforcement roles in the “John Wick” movies, an action franchise starring Keanu Reeves. He played Saron, a hotel manager, appearing in all four films, the first of which was released in 2014. The latest film is releasing this month.
In those roles and all others, Mr. Reddick was a unique, instantly recognizable presence, even if he didn’t quote a household name. As players of Horizon Zero Dawn, Destiny 2 and other video games know, his voice is also unique.
In 2019, Mr. Reddick says, “Range is always what I strive for. The characters I play, even in their diversity, are very intense. But they’re all very different guys.
Mr. Reddick was born in Baltimore. His mother taught instrumental music, and his father was an educator and later a public defender.
Mr. Reddick attended the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, where he studied classical composition. He was an accomplished pianist and in 2010 released an album of his own works, “Thoughts and Memories.”
In the early 1990s, Mr. Reddick stayed in Boston and explored acting, and soon earned a master’s degree at the Yale School of Drama, appearing at the Yale Repertory Theater with Liev Schreiber and other future stars.
He is survived by his wife, Stephanie Reddick; a daughter, Yvonne Nicole Reddick; and a son, Christopher Reddick.
Let me know and McKenna Oxenden contributed reporting.
A full obituary will appear soon.
