Rest in Peace: Michael Massee
Steve Barton
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Another wonderful character actor has been taken from us too soon as Deadline is reporting that Michael Massee (The Crow, Seven, The Amazing Spider-Man) has passed on at age 61.
Massee died October 26, 2016, from undisclosed causes. The news was first announced by French actor Anthony Delon, Massee’s fellow cast member on the 2014 French series “Interventions.”
From Kansas City, Missouri, Massee’s film career was still new when he landed his second feature role, as Funboy in The Crow. On March 31, 1993 during filming of the film based on the comic by James O’Barr, members of the crew had improperly prepared dummy cartridges for a revolver, accidentally creating a live round in the process. The gun was intended for the scene in which Massee’s character, Funboy, kills Brandon Lee’s character, Eric Draven, turning Draven into The Crow. Unaware of the crew’s mistake, Massee fired the revolver, tragically shooting Lee in the stomach; Lee died later that day after an unsuccessful surgery.
Massee was deeply traumatized by his inadvertent role in Lee’s death; he refused to see the completed film and took a year off from acting afterward. In a 2005 interview, he admitted he still had nightmares about it and said, “I don’t think you ever get over something like that.”
Massee resumed his career in 1995, appearing that year in Tales from the Hood and Seven, among other films. He went on to appear in David Lynch’s Lost Highway and The Game, Stephen Spielberg’s Amistad, and more recently as Marvel villain Gustav Fiers (“The Gentleman”) in The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. On television, Massee’s credits include Lucius Belyakovin on HBO’s “Carnivàle,” mercenary and former Navy SEAL Ira Gaines on the first season of “24,” the killer Charles Hoyt on TNT’s “Rizzoli & Isles,” and the main villain on NBC’s “Revelations.” He also had roles on “Fringe,” “Supernatural,” “CSI,” House, and many others.
We here at Dread Central would like to take this time to offer our sincerest of condolences to Massee’s friends, family, and constituents. Rest easy, sir. You will be missed.
Categorized:News
