From comedic giants to unforgettable character actors to voices fans will hear their minds forever, we have lost some true greats of film and TV in 2024.
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00:00From comedic giants to unforgettable character actors, the voices fans will hear in their
00:04minds forever, we've lost some true greats of film and TV in 2024.
00:10On January 6, 2024, Caddyshack and Tron star Cindy Morgan passed away at age 69. According
00:16to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, she died of natural causes. Morgan first entered
00:20showbiz appearing in Irish Spring soap commercials. Soon after, she found herself starring alongside
00:25comedy heavyweights Chevy Chase and Rodney Dangerfield in 1980's Caddyshack. The film
00:29saw Morgan take on the iconic role of Lacey Underall, where she played the niece of Ted
00:33Knight's villainous Judge Smalls. Two years later, she starred opposite Jeff Bridges in
00:38Tron, playing the roles of Dr. Laura Baines in Yori. She also made plenty of television
00:42appearances on shows including Falcon Crest, The Highwayman, The Larry Sanders Show, and
00:46Matlock. Morgan's last official role came in 2022, where she had a voice role in Face
00:51of the Trinity.
00:53Bill Cobbs was a classic that-guy actor. While never a blockbuster star, he was immediately
00:57recognizable, always brought his A-game, and elevated every movie and TV show he worked
01:02on. After serving in the U.S. Air Force, Cobbs got his start on the stage with New York's
01:06Negro Ensemble Company. He then made the jump to the screen with a quick appearance in the
01:09classic heist movie The Taking at Pelham 123. From there, Cobbs starred in comedies like
01:14Trading Places and the Coen Brothers underrated The Hudsucker Proxy.
01:17They did it because they figured young Norval was an imbecile, like some other people I
01:22know.
01:23He was in thrillers like New Jack City, horror flicks like Wes Craven's The People Under
01:28the Stairs, weird indie sci-fi like The Brother from Another Planet, and romance films like
01:31the Kevin Costner-Whitney Houston vehicle The Bodyguard. Cobbs was also the coach who
01:36put a dog on the court in Air Bud, and he was also one of three old janitors plotting
01:40against Ben Stiller in Night at the Museum. We could list a lot more. He also appeared
01:44in countless TV shows — One Tree Hill, NYPD Blue, The West Wing, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,
01:49and The Sopranos, among others.
01:51Cobbs died of natural causes on June 25, 2024, at the age of 90. His brother, Thomas G. Cobbs,
01:57wrote on Facebook,
01:58"...Bill was a phenomenal human being in addition to being a spectacular actor. He was very
02:02kind, giving, and attentive to others."
02:05Much like his Arrested Development character Jean Parmesan, Martin Mole could pop up anywhere
02:09and delight comedy fans.
02:11Jean Parmesan? Right here.
02:14Mole got his start in show business as a songwriter and musical comedian before breaking into acting
02:18in the world of Norman Lear, in Lear's soap opera satire Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, and
02:22his talk show parodies Fernwood Tonight and America Tonight. From there, he starred as
02:28Colonel Mustard alongside an ensemble cast in 1985's Clue, and amassed a varied filmography
02:32including Mr. Mom, Mrs. Doubtfire, and the live-action 101 Dalmatians.
02:37Many fans probably know him best for his TV work, portraying Roseanne Barr's boss in Roseanne,
02:41the vice principal in Sabrina the Teenage Witch, a drug-using pharmacist in Two and
02:45a Half Men, and the aforementioned Jean Parmesan. Mole died of an undisclosed illness on June
02:5027, 2024, at 80 years old.
02:53His daughter Maggie Mole announced his passion on Instagram, writing,
02:57He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable, and also for doing
03:00Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny.
03:05Shelley Duvall captivated audiences with her big eyes and bold performances every time
03:09she stepped in front of a camera. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the Texas native
03:13was discovered by staffers working for director Robert Altman. She made her debut in as Brewster
03:17MacLeod, and the two became a cinematic powerhouse, making a total of seven movies together, including
03:22Popeye, where Duvall played olive oil.
03:24Of course, Duvall is most famous for playing the terrified Wendy Torrance in The Shining.
03:28Don't hurt me!
03:29I'm not gonna hurt you.
03:32Don't hurt me!
03:34The film had an infamously difficult shoot, especially for Duvall. Director Stanley Kubrick
03:38was especially hard on her, forcing her to do endless takes and pushing her to the breaking
03:42point. However, despite the widespread myth, those close to her have said The Shining didn't
03:46play any part in Duvall's struggles with mental illness later in life.
03:50Duvall also left her footprint on the world of TV, hosting Fairytale Theater, Tall Tales
03:54and Legends, and Shelley Duvall's Bedtime series. Eventually, she withdrew from Hollywood,
03:59but did return to acting in 2023 with the horror film The Forest Hills.
04:03Near the end of her life, Duvall had the support of her partner Dan Gilroy and friend Sarah
04:07Lukowski, who runs the Shelley Duvall Archive on X. The legendary actress died at 75 on
04:13July 11, 2024 in her sleep, due to complications arising from diabetes.
04:18After appearing as Jenny Wilder in the final season of Little House on the Prairie, Shannon
04:22Doherty became a 90s sensation on Beverly Hills' 90210. She played Brenda Walsh, a Minnesotan
04:27who moves to California and must navigate her glitzy surroundings while dealing with
04:31all sorts of soap opera problems. Leaving the show after four seasons, she then starred
04:35in another long-running TV show she left early, Charmed.
04:38Doherty was something of a lightning rod for controversy, with reports of on-set feuds
04:42and with fans turning on her. However, none of that drama could compare to the struggle
04:46Doherty would face later in life. In 2015, she announced that she'd been diagnosed with
04:51breast cancer, and she used the opportunity to shine a light on breast cancer awareness.
04:55Even during her struggle, she kept busy, appearing in projects like BH90210, Riverdale, and The
05:00Heathers TV show. Doherty passed away on July 13, 2024, at just 53.
05:06Speaking with People, her publicist Leslie Sloan said,
05:09"[The devoted daughter, sister, aunt, and friend was surrounded by her loved ones as
05:13well as her dog, Bowie.] Her Charmed co-star, Alyssa Milano, also told People,
05:17"'It's no secret that Shannon and I had a complicated relationship, but at its core
05:21was someone I deeply respected and was in awe of. She was a talented actress, beloved
05:25by many, and the world is less without her.'"
05:28Born on September 5, 1929, Bob Newhart had no idea that one day he'd become a world-renowned
05:33comedian. In fact, he started off as an accountant before a short stint in radio led to his Grammy-winning
05:39album The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart. From there, the deadpan comic with a stammering
05:43style made his way into TV, leaving a lasting mark with two classic sitcoms.
05:48In CBS' The Bob Newhart Show, he played clinical psychologist Bob Hartley, a man dealing with
05:52several unique patients and a quick-witted wife. After nearly 150 episodes, he jumped
05:57into another CBS sitcom, Newhart, where he played a New York writer running a Vermont
06:01inn full of kooky characters.
06:03After lasting for eight seasons, Newhart cemented its place in pop culture with one of TV's
06:07very best endings, waking up on the set of his previous sitcom.
06:10"'I was an innkeeper in this crazy little town in Vermont.'"
06:16Disney fans might know Newhart best for voicing the unassertive yet brave Bernard in both
06:20Rescuers movies. And if you love the Christmas classic Elf, then you remember Newhart as
06:24Buddy's adoptive dad. He also appeared in shows like The Big Bang Theory, ER, and Desperate
06:29Housewives. He also won numerous accolades, such as being inducted into the Academy of
06:33Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame, and being awarded the Kennedy Center's Mark
06:37Twain Prize for American Humor. The legendary comedian died on July 18, 2024, after dealing
06:42with a series of short illnesses. He was 94.
06:46Friday the 13th Part VI, Jason Lives, is commonly hailed as one of the best entries in the Friday
06:51the 13th series. It's a movie that gave us the first instance of zombie Jason, and it
06:56expertly blends horror and comedy, resulting in a film with both thrilling kills and winking
07:00moments.
07:01Perhaps one of the silliest scenes in the movie occurs when a group of business executives
07:04are playing paintball in the woods. The most memorable member of the bunch is the bespeckled
07:08Roy, played by Whitney Rydbeck. He isn't the best paintball player in the world, but he
07:12takes the game very seriously. Unfortunately, the fun comes to a screeching halt when Jason
07:17shows up. Roy does his best to fight Jason off with a paintball pellet to the chest,
07:21but eventually runs off wide-eyed into the woods.
07:23Oh, my God! My God! Help, guys! Help me!
07:29In addition to starring in the famous slasher film, Rydbeck also appeared in projects Star
07:33Trek The Next Generation, Murder, She Wrote, and Scrubs, among others. The actor died from
07:38prostate cancer on July 15, 2024.
07:41Cheng Pei-pei is one of the most legendary names of the wuxia genre of Chinese action
07:45films. Cheng became a key player at the Shaw Brothers Studio, which produced many martial
07:49arts classics. One of those films, Come Drink With Me, featured Cheng as Golden Swallow,
07:54a woman who allies with a drunk to rescue her kidnapped brother. It's considered a wuxia
07:58landmark, and Quentin Tarantino even considered remaking it.
08:01According to The New York Times, Cheng would earn the nickname Queen of Swords for her
08:05many martial arts performances. Most Western audiences, however, would recognize Cheng
08:09from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, where she played the villainous Jade Fox, the mentor
08:13of the unstoppable swordswoman Zhen Yu. Crouching Tiger would become the highest-grossing non-English
08:17film in the U.S. — a record it's held since 2000 — and would also win Best Foreign Language
08:22Film at the Academy Awards.
08:24Disney fans might also recognize Cheng as the matchmaker from the live-action version
08:27of Mulan. The Queen of Swords died at the age of 78 on July 17, 2024, after being diagnosed
08:33with a neurodegenerative disease in 2019.
08:36While the Halloween franchise has largely revolved around the same few leads, the margins
08:41have always been populated by notable and colorful characters such as Sheriff Lee Brackett.
08:45He first appeared in the original Halloween film, assisting Dr. Loomis in his hunt for
08:49Michael. He briefly reappeared in Halloween II and joined the mob in Halloween Kills before
08:54getting slaughtered by Michael.
08:56Brackett is also responsible for one of the series' most famous lines.
08:58You know, it's Halloween. I guess everyone's entitled to one good scare, huh?
09:03In short, Brackett played a key part in the classic, if convoluted, franchise. That was
09:07largely thanks to actor Charles Cyphers, the man behind the badge. Born in Niagara Falls,
09:12New York, Cyphers graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and California State
09:16University, and soon after he became a John Carpenter regular, not only appearing in Halloween,
09:20but also Assault on Precinct 13, The Fog, and Escape from New York.
09:24In addition to those beloved titles, Brackett kept busy with appearances in TV shows like
09:29ER, Seinfeld, and Puffy the Vampire Slayer, among many others. Cyphers died on August
09:344, 2024, at the age of 85.
09:37Born in 1952 in Belcombe, South Africa, Connie Chumet started her professional career as
09:41a nurse. That all changed in 1977, when she was bitten by the acting bug. After participating
09:47in the Greek musical Sola Sola, she began getting attention back in South Africa thanks
09:51to TV shows like Zone 14 and Rhythm City. She only became widely known to U.S. audiences
09:56in 2018, when she was featured in one of the most popular movies in Hollywood history.
10:00While she didn't star as a lead, Chumet was nevertheless a notable character in Marvel's
10:04Black Panther. She appeared as Zawavari, a mining tribe elder on the Wakanda Tribal Council.
10:09Black Panther set box office records and became the first Marvel movie to win an Academy Award.
10:14So when the MCU returned to Wakanda for the Black Panther sequel, Chumet did as well.
10:18Her character replaces Forrest Whitaker's Zuri as the elder statesman of the vibranium-rich
10:22African nation. In addition to the two Black Panther movies, Chumet also appeared in Beyoncé's
10:27Black as King. In the visual companion to The Lion King the Gift, a soundtrack created
10:31by Beyoncé to accompany the live-action Disney remake, Chumet plays Sarabi, the mother of
10:36a young prince who goes on a journey of self-discovery and empowerment. Chumet passed away on August
10:416, 2024. She was 72.
10:44While you might not recognize Rachel Lillis' face, you probably recognize her voice.
10:50Lillis' voice role credits include titles such as Hunter x Hunter and The Winx Club.
10:54But she's best known for her work in one of the most beloved video game adaptations of
10:57all time, the Pokemon TV series. Lillis played iconic characters including Jigglypuff, Vulpix,
11:03and Goldeen. And she also loaned her voice to the Super Smash Bros. games.
11:07Of course, her most important contribution to Pokemon was voicing two of the lead human
11:12She not only portrayed the water-type gym leader Misty, one of the show's big three
11:15leads, but also one of the series' main villains, Jessie of Team Rocket fame. Lillis worked
11:20in over 400 episodes of the show. But tragically, she was diagnosed with breast cancer in May
11:252024 and passed away on August 10. She was 55 years old.
11:29Writing on Axe, Lillis' Pokemon co-star Veronica Taylor, the voice of Ash Ketchum, paid tribute
11:34to her friend by writing in part,
11:36"...we all know Rachel Lillis from the many wonderful roles she played. She filled her
11:39Saturday mornings and before-and-after-school hours with her beautiful voice, her terrific
11:43comedic timing, and her remarkable acting skills. Rachel was an extraordinary talent,
11:48a bright light that shone through her voice whether speaking or singing."
11:51"'Guess I'll be going this way. Yeah. Take care, Ash. You too, Misty."
11:59One of the most important and ferocious actors of her generation, Jenna Rollins got her start
12:03on the stage before she made her sizable mark on the world of independent cinema. Rollins
12:08met her husband, John Cassavetes, while attending the American Academy of the Dramatic Arts,
12:12and soon the two were married and making some of the most powerful movies of the 1970s and
12:1680s. Together, they worked on 10 films, all of which were visceral, intense, and grounded
12:20in naturalism.
12:22In addition to titles like Faces and Opening Night, Rollins is most remembered for starring
12:26in A Woman Under the Influence and Gloria, all directed by her husband. The latter two
12:30films earned her Oscar nominations, and while she never won an acting Oscar, she did receive
12:35an Honorary Academy Award in 2015.
12:38Of course, more modern audiences will most likely recognize her from one of the most
12:41popular and beloved romantic dramas ever made, The Notebook. Directed by her son, Nick Cassavetes,
12:47Rollins played the older version of Rachel McAdams' character, who's suffering from dementia.
12:51Sadly, Rollins herself would be diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 2019. While the official
12:55cause is yet to be announced, the revered actor died on August 14, 2024, at the age
13:00of 94.
13:01Fast as time goes, it flies right on by."
13:07No, yes it does."
13:09While he was never a huge star in the U.S., Alain Delon was a pretty big deal outside
13:13Hollywood circles. During the 60s and 70s, he was a massive name in France, as well as
13:18Japan. He also played in a series of films that hardcore cinephiles hold dear, like the
13:22Italian drama Rocco and His Brothers, the historical epic The Leopard, and Purple Noon.
13:27However, Delon is most famous for his starring role in Jean-Pierre Melville's 1967 French
13:32neo-noir The Samurai. Here, Delon played a silent, fedora-wearing, icy-cool hitman who
13:37follows a strict code of conduct. You can see the influence of Delon's calm, collected
13:41character reflected in movies like John Woo's The Killer and David Fincher's similarly titled
13:45The Killer. Quentin Tarantino also acknowledged the film's influence on reservoir dogs.
13:50Even John Wick's world of hitmen abiding by a certain set of rules owes something to Delon
13:53and his fashionable assassin. With that much cinematic influence, no wonder Delon was awarded
13:58the Honorary Palme d'Or in 2019. That same year, the actor suffered a debilitating stroke,
14:03and in 2024, he was diagnosed with B-cell lymphoma. The actor died on August 18, 2024.
14:09He was 88.
14:11If you're an anime fan, then you've definitely heard Atsuko Tanaka's voice bringing characters
14:15to life. Since the 90s, she's appeared in nearly 300 anime and video games, including
14:20some of the most beloved properties of all time. Tanaka's biggest claim to fame is voicing
14:24Mutoko Kusanagi, the protagonist of Ghost in the Shell, widely considered one of the
14:29greatest anime movies ever made.
14:31She's also loaned her vocal expertise to anime like Naruto, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, as
14:40well as the video game Bayonetta. Tanaka passed away on August 20, 2024, writing on Axe her
14:46son paid tribute, saying,
14:48I feel truly blessed to have had such a proud mother. Please do not forget that Atsuko Tanaka
14:52poured her heart and soul into the characters she loved and brought to life. She was 61.
14:58A screen and stage titan, James Earl Jones was forever immortalized as the voice of Darth
15:02Vader in 1977's Star Wars A New Hope.
15:04When I left you, I was but a learner. Now I am the master.
15:10While David Prowse and others portrayed Vader physically, Jones provided the deep, menacing
15:13voice behind the mask for the original trilogy, as well as other subsequent Star Wars films.
15:18Jones' famous tones were also heard as the voice of Mufasa in 1994's The Lion King, numerous
15:23commercials, and on CNN for years.
15:25This is CNN.
15:28But Jones wasn't just renowned for his voice. Born in Mississippi, Jones studied drama at
15:32the University of Michigan and began acting with local theater groups after a stint in
15:36the military. He made his Broadway debut in 1957 as an understudy in a play called The
15:41Egghead, later garnering acclaim for his performances in Shakespeare classics in 1968's The Great
15:46White Hope, for which he won his first Tony Award.
15:49His screen debut came in Stanley Kubrick's 1964 satire Dr. Strangelove, and later film
15:54credits included Conan the Barbarian, Coming to America, Field of Dreams, The Hunt for
15:58Red October, and many more. He also logged numerous TV credits and continued to perform
16:03on the stage.
16:04In addition to two Tonys, Jones received two Emmys, a Grammy, a Golden Globe Award, a Lifetime
16:09Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild, the National Medal of Arts, and an
16:12Honorary Academy Award. He died on September 9, 2024, at his home in Dutchess County, New
16:18York, at the age of 93.