R.I.P.: Yaphet Kotto of Alien and Freddy’s Dead has passed away at 81

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Last night, the wife of veteran actor Yaphet Kotto took to Facebook to make the sad announcement that Kotto has passed away unexpectedly at the age of 81. The actor's agent has since confirmed the news.

Born in 1939, Kotto got his start acting in stage plays and on Broadway. He made his screen acting debut in the 1964 film Nothing But a Man, and over the course of fifty years added over ninety more titles to his résumé. Among his most popular credits are the 1968 version of The Thomas Crown Affair, Larry Cohen's Bone, Across 110th Street, Truck Turner, Friday Foster, Drum, Blue Collar, Brubaker, The Puppet Masters, and the television series Homicide: Life on the Street, where he played Al Giardello for seven seasons. He also wrote a couple episodes of that show.

Kotto joined the ranks of iconic James Bond villains when he took on the role of Kananga, a.k.a. Mr. Big, in the 1973 film Live and Let Die, which was Roger Moore's first film as Bond. In 1979 he played the character Parker in the sci-fi horror classic Alien. He fought for his life alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1987 film The Running Man, and had a terrible time working on the 1988 Robert De Niro / Charles Grodin action comedy Midnight Run, but was pleased with the finished film. In 1991, he attempted to end a horror icon's reign of terror with his role as Doc in Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare.

Kotto earned his sole directing credit with the 1972 crime film The Limit, which he also starred in.

The actor's last credit was on the 2014 video game Alien: Isolation, where he provided the voice of his Alien character Parker. Although Kotto didn't have a screen acting role since 2008's Witless Protection, his wife said he had been offered roles in a G.I. Joe movie and a Tom Cruise movie in the days before his death.

Kotto was one of the greats, and it's very sad to know that we've lost him. He is survived by his wife and six children.

Our sincere condolences go out to his family, friends, and fans.