British actor Tom Wilkinson, best known for his work in The Full Monty and Batman Begins, has passed away suddenly at the age of 75. A prolific character actor, Wilkinson earned two Academy Award nominations for his work in Michael Clayton and In the Bedroom. And while he may not have been a household name, he lent gravitas and touching humor to every role he played.
Wilkinson is perhaps best known for his role as uptight former boss Gerald Cooper, who reluctantly joins the all-male strip act in The Full Monty. He won a BAFTA for his performance and reprised the role this year in FX’s The Full Monty series. Wilkinson appeared in some of the most popular films of the ’90s and 2000s, including Shakespeare in Love, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Rush Hour, and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.
Genre fans will remember him best as mobster Carmine Falcone in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins. He also played Benjamin Franklin in the HBO miniseries John Adams, for which he won a Golden Globe and a Primetime Emmy Award. In 2005, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to drama.
If you’re looking to watch Wilkinson’s best work, the three essential films are The Full Monty, Michael Clayton, and In the Bedroom. He is heartbreaking and hilarious in The Full Monty, and he brings pathos and brilliance to his role as bipolar lawyer Arthur Edens in Michael Clayton. But it is his performance as a bereaved father in Todd Field’s 2001 drama In the Bedroom that cuts the deepest. Wilkson’s work is powerful in its restraint and its quieter moments, making it the performance of a lifetime. He is matched in intensity by Sissy Spacek, who plays his wife in the film.
Many took to social media to remember Wilkinson.
(featured image: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
