Lord of the Rings and Titanic actor Bernard Hill (79) has died

NOS News•today, 10:06

British actor Bernard Hill has died at the age of 79. Hill has appeared in more than 100 films and TV series, but is best known for his roles in two absolute blockbusters: The Lord of the Ringstrilogy and Titanic. Hill died Sunday morning.

He played the role of King Théoden in the The Lord of the Rings-movies The Two Towers and The Return of the King.

A scene from The Return of the King showing King Théoden’s speech, prior to the battle:

Hill was meant to be at the Comic Con fan fair in Liverpool on Saturday, but had to cancel at the last minute.

When news of his death broke, the Comic Con organization said https://twitter.com/comconliverpool/status/1787124879214420171 to be “heartbroken”. Actors Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd, who played the hobbits Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin in the Lord of the Rings –trilogy, were also present at the fair.

The four stood on stage in Liverpool to remember the death of their former colleague. Astin said they had lost “a family member.” “He was fearless, he was funny, he was gruff, he was short-tempered, he was beautiful,” said Astin, who played Samwise Gamgee.

Boyd said he had recently watched the trilogy with Monaghan and felt that no one had heard the words of Tolkien, the author of the Lord of the Ringsbooks, had conveyed as well as Hill.

The moment when the actors talk about Hill:

In the United Kingdom, Hill is also known for the BBC drama series Boys from the Blackstuff, in which he plays an unemployed man who does everything he can to find work. He made his breakthrough in the role of Yosser Hughes in the early 1980s.

The BBC spoke to the series’ writer, Alan Bleasdale, who called Hill’s death a “major loss and also a big surprise.” He calls Hill’s performance in the series “amazing and mesmerizing”. “Bernard gave everything and you can see that in all the scenes. He became Yosser Hughes.”

Bleasdale says he was eager to work with Hill. “The way he worked and his portrayal of the role; he brought everything you could wish for. You had the feeling that Bernard would have eternal life. He had great strength, both physically and in terms of personality.”

Hill is the only actor to star in two films that have grossed more than a billion dollars and both won eleven Oscars (The Return of the King from 2003 and Titanic from 1997). In Titanic he plays Captain Edwards, who remains in the wheelhouse until the last moment when the famous ship is sinking.

Hill’s impresario reports to the BBC that the actor died in the presence of his fiancée Alison and his son Gabriel. What caused his death has not been revealed.