Rocio Mateos
Film and Emmy-nominated actress, Glenne Headly, died Thursday night. Headly was best known for her roles in ‘Dick Tracy’ and ‘Mr. Holland’s Opus.’ She was 62.
Headly’s reps shared the news on Friday morning, although no cause of death or location was provided. “It is with deep sorrow that we confirm the passing of Glenne Headly,” the statement says. “We ask that her family’s privacy is respected during this difficult time.”
Kicking off her career as a stage actress, she was one of the originating members of Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre Company, founded in 1974. Alongside with actors including John Malkovich, Laurie Metcalf, and Tracy Letts. Headly and Malkovich got married in 1982 and divorced six years later.
She performed in several plays, including ‘Arms and the Man,’ directed by Malkovich. ‘Aunt Dan and Lemon,’ with Wallace Shawn directing, and last year in Sarah Ruhl’s ‘Stage Kiss’ at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles.
It took seven years for Headly to finally star in a film
In 1981 she made her feature film debut in the comedy drama ‘Four Friends.’ Followed by small parts in films like ‘Doctor Detroit,’ ‘Fandango,’ and Woody Allen’s ‘The Purple Rose of Cairo.’ Headly finally found her breakout role in 1988 as Janet Colgate in the comedy ‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,’ featuring Steve Martin and Michael Caine.
In 1990, she found box-office success with ‘Dick Tracy,’ portraying the coldhearted detective’s girlfriend. Later, in 1995, she played Iris Holland, the wife of Richard Dreyfuss’ titular character, in the Academy Award-nominated ‘Mr. Holland’s Opus.’
More film roles of her prolific career include ‘Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen’ as Lindsay Lohan character’s mother. And ‘Don Jon’ as Jon’s mom in the film directed and starred by Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The last film released before her death was ‘The Circle,’ in which she played the mother of Emma Watson’s character. There is yet to be released another featured film, titled ‘Villa Capri,’ currently in post-production.
Headly was in the middle of filming a new series
At the time of her death, the actress was filming the upcoming Seth Rogen-Evan Goldberg produced Hulu series ‘Future Man.’ The comedy stars Josh Hutcherson, Eliza Coupe, and Ed Begley Jr., and Headly was set to play Hutcherson’s mother, Diane. It’s unclear how the series will proceed after the actress death, but the series producer Sony Pictures Television did say that her role will not be recast, and she’ll remain in the episodes completed so far.
The comedy series follows the story of a janitor who is recruited by some enigmatic character to travel through time, in order to prevent the extinction of the human race.
“We are saddened by the sudden loss of Glenne Headly. Our deepest condolences go out to her family and friends. She was an incredible talent and will be missed,” Sony said in a statement.
Headly’s career in television was also successful. The actress was nominated for an Emmy for her role in the miniseries ‘Lonesome Dove’ in 1989, and again for 1996’s Showtime film adaptation of ‘Bastard Out of Carolina.’ She was also a recurring character on NBC’s ‘ER’. She was recently seen starring in HBO’s drama ‘The Night Of.’
Stars pay tribute to the late actress online
Following the announcement of Headly’s death, many collaborators, fellow actors, and fans took on social media to pay homage to the actress.
Steve Martin, who also starred with the actress in ‘Sgt. Bilko,’ was the first to pronounce, tweeting: “Our household mourns the sudden loss of a beloved friend, actress, and comic genius, Glenne Headly.”
Our household mourns the sudden loss of beloved friend, actress, and comic genius, Glenne Headly.
— Steve Martin (@SteveMartinToGo) June 9, 2017
Tom Hanks, Seth Rogen, and even Tegan and Sara tweeted about how affected they are because of the devastating news.
Terribly sad to learn of Glenne Headly passing. Hanx.
— Tom Hanks (@tomhanks) June 9, 2017
Devastated to hear about Glenne Headly’s passing. She was an amazing person. Incredibly talented. Incredibly kind. I will miss her.
— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) June 9, 2017
Oh no. So sad to hear that Glenne Headly passed away. We must have made our dad watch Dirty Rotten Scoundrels with us 100 times. 🙁 RIP
— Tegan and Sara (@teganandsara) June 9, 2017
Josh Hutcherson even posted a heart-wrenching message on his Instagram, saying, among many other things, “I’m gonna miss her presence, her smile, and the way she made me feel like her son before, between, and after they called action and cut.”
