John Hurt has died, at age 77. He played many great SFF roles – Kane in Alien (and Spaceballs), Winston Smith in 1984 and the Big Brother-like Sutler in V for Vendetta, Hadden in Contact, Professor Broom in Hellboy, Mr. Ollivander in the Harry Potter movies, and many more.
“I hope I shall have the courage to say, 'Vroom! Here we go! Let's become different molecules!'”
Rest in peace, Sir John.
I especially enjoyed his portrayal of the elder Dante in the BBC Radio 4 production of Danté's The Divine Comedy, the melancholy War Doctor and his wonderfully over-the-top acting as High Chancellor Adam Sutler in V for Vendetta.
It saddens me that he's passed on.
John Hurt was one of the better parts of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
He also showed off his vocal range in Watership Down.
My favorite sci-fi related John Hurt movies are:
And of course, we cannot forget
R.I.P. John Hurt. You will be missed by all of your fans.
I've always thought that 1984, starring John Hurt and Richard Burton, is one of the best film adaptations of any book, SFF or otherwise. The same can't be said of the animated Lord of the Rings (or any other film adaptation of that book). Still, John Hurt as the voice of Aragorn was a big plus point.
Let us not forget he was the voice of the Dragon, Kilgharrah, in BBC's Merlin
Nobody else has mentioned it, so I will. John Hurt was fantastic as Professor Broom in Hellboy.
Wonderful cast all around, but Hurt was sorely missed for the sequel.
I think he was the perfect choice for Kane in Alien -- his screen time was limited by his early death in the film, but he did such a good job of playing someone who, in my opinion, knew he was trouble even after he emerged from the medical bay -- even though the audience knew for sure he was in for it, his character also sensed that such a crazy thing can't have happened for no reason -- the facehugger was not just hanging out. I forget why they could not see the embryo inside of him, but he did not know it. But all the same, I think he knew he was doomed.
