M. Emmet Walsh dies: 10 memorable performances from the late, great character actor
One of the defining character actors of a generation has reportedly died.
M. Emmet Walsh, one of the most recognizable supporting actors of the past 50 years in movies, died at the age of 88, USA TODAY confirmed on Wednesday.
Walsh made his mark on Hollywood by rounding out various casts in plenty of iconic films, blending into the background early in his career in films like Midnight Cowboy, What’s Up, Doc? and Serpico.
He proved his range and vitality with larger roles in plenty of 20th century standouts like Blade Runner, Straight Time, Slap Shot, Ordinary People, Blood Simple, Reds, Raising Arizona, Romeo + Juliet, Airport ’77 and Silkwood.
He continued to work until his death, delivering memorable turns in in films like 2014’s Calvary and 2019’s Knives Out. Filmmaker Rian Johnson fondly remembered his time with Walsh on the Knives Out set.
Walsh was one of the great “Hey, I know that guy!” actors to ever work in the industry, impossible of delivering a bad performance because of how seamless he could slip into an ensemble, no matter how big or small the role. Even if he was on screen just for a couple of scenes, he made a difference.
He’s basically one of the main reasons we have modern-day character actors, as he never needed to lead a cast to make an impression on it. You knew exactly who he was, and he always did his job well.
In his pan of the 1989 film Dream A Little Dream, the late, great film critic Roger Ebert wrote this now legendary note of praise for Walsh and fellow character acting great Harry Dean Stanton for their indelible screen presence.
“The neighbor is played by Harry Dean Stanton, who has more to lose than Robards in this movie, since Dream a Little Dream is a clear violation of the Stanton-Walsh Rule, which states: ‘No movie featuring either Harry Dean Stanton or M. Emmet Walsh in a supporting role can be altogether bad.'”
Walsh has one last performance slated for 2024, a Mario Van Peebles western titled Outlaw Posse.
Let’s take a look back at 10 of Walsh’s more notable performances with news of his death, though there are plenty more from his filmography worthy of recognition.