Certain actors are so incredibly talented that many of their biggest fans have no idea who they are. In the industry we call them “character actors,” those performers who appear in movies and television, in roles big and small, and always make the most of every scene. They create powerful portrayals of stand-out individuals, often with very few scenes or lines of dialogue. They are the backbone of Hollywood, and we just lost one of the greats.
Powers Boothe, the co-star of Tombstone, Deadwood and Sin City, died earlier today at the age of 68. The actor made his debut in Herbert Ross’s Oscar-winning drama The Goodbye Girl and, just three years later, won an Emmy Award for his breakthrough performance as a real-life cult leader in Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones.
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That performance set Powers Boothe’s career on a trajectory, one that would take him through a series of popular, villainous performances and make him one of the industry’s most recognizable “heavies.” But his sonorous delivery, his powerful physicality and his sly sense of humor would be used to great effect in a variety of roles, through film and television, making Powers Boothe one of the most ubiquitous actors in Hollywood for over three decades. Audiences always recognized Powers Boothe, knew that whenever we saw him, the film or television show were watching was about to kick ass.
Powers Boothe will be dearly missed. He’s one of those incredible characters who took on roles that didn’t seem to exist before the start of their career, and whose persona will be difficult to replicate in films and television of the future. He was a singular, and singularly talented performer who made good films great, great films amazing, and sometimes made bad films seem surprisingly good.
Join us as we look back at our favorite roles, the films that we’ll always think of when we think of Powers Boothe. You may have other performances that you would like to add to the list. That’s the mark of a great actor, when they made such a great impression over so many wonderful roles that we can’t all agree on a favorite. Share your favorite performances with us, won’t you?
Nine Roles That Made Us Love the Late, Great Powers Boothe:
Top Photo: Eddy Chen/ABC via Getty Images
William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and Canceled Too Soon, and watch him on the weekly YouTube series What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
Nine Roles That Made Powers Boothe a Legend
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Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones (1980)
Powers Boothe's breakout role was in this ambitious, hot button made-for-tv mini-series about the horrifying events that led to a cult's mass suicide. Powers Boothe played the cult leader, Jim Jones, a role that would cement him quickly as an performer of sinister gravitas. Boothe earned an Emmy Award for this performance, beating out Hollywood royalty like Henry Fonda, Jason Robards and Tony Curtis.
Photo: CBS
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Southern Comfort (1981)
Walter Hill's harrowing thriller, about a team of National Guardsmen, training in the bayou, running afoul of violent locals who know the terrain better than they do. Powers Boothe gives a standout performance in an impressive cast, that includes Keith Carradine, Fred Ward and Peter Coyote.
Photo: 20th Century Fox
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Red Dawn (1984)
The ultimate Cold War paranoid thriller stars Patrick Swayze, Charlie Sheen, C. Thomas Howell, Lea Thompson and Jennifer Grey as teenaged freedom fighters who take arms against an invading communist army in Colorado. Powers Boothe plays the soldier who teams up with our young heroes, and both empowers and validates their struggle.
Photo: MGM / UA
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Tombstone (1993)
Powers Boothe menaced the Old West in Tombstone, one of the most celebrated modern westerns. He played the wicked Curly Bill, the leader of the murderous outlaws who lead Wyatt Earp and Doc Holiday on a mission of justice and revenge.
Photo: Buena Vista Pictures
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Sudden Death (1995)
One of the best Die Hard knockoffs, Sudden Death stars Jean-Claude Van Damme as a fire marshal who has to prevent terrorists, led by a deliciously evil Powers Boothe, from blowing up a hockey stadium in the middle of the big game.
Photo: Universal Pictures
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Sin City (2005)
In perhaps his most devilish performance, Powers Boothe played an unbelievably corrupt politician who will stop at nothing to get revenge on the cop who captured, and mutilated, his serial killer son.
Photo: Miramax Films
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Justice League Unlimited (2002-2006)
How do you make audiences take a super-intelligent ape seriously? Give him the voice of Powers Boothe. As the Justice League villain Gorilla Grodd, Boothe made the very unusual bad guy every bit the equal of even more popular comic book supervillains, like Lex Luthor and Darkseid.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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Deadwood (2004-2006)
One of the most celebrated TV dramas co-starred Powers Boothe as Cy Tolliver, the manipulative owner of a saloon in the title town. Powers Boothe joined the rest of the cast in earned a Screen Actors Guild Award for his unforgettable performance.
Photo: HBO
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Avengers (2012) and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2015-2016)
Powers Boothe turned a cameo in the blockbuster superhero movie The Avengers into a slithering, villainous recurring role on the tie-in television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. It was Boothe's final television role before his death.
Photo: ABC
