Philip Seymour Hoffman, Oscar-Winning Actor, Dies at 46
Acclaimed actor and director Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead this morning of an apparent drug overdose.
Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images
According to the New York Times, an anonymous official reported that Hoffman was found on the bathroom floor in his West Village apartment around 11:30 a.m. by a playwright friend who had gone to check on the actor when Hoffman could not be contacted.
A syringe and an envelope containing a substance believed to be heroin were found in the apartment.
“It’s pretty apparent it was an overdose,” the official said to the NY Times. “The syringe was in his arm.”
Hoffman had struggled with addiction years ago; last year he spoke in interviews about “falling off the wagon” after remaining clean for 23 years. His biography on the Turner Classic Movies website stated “he was getting a handle on the situation.”
Hoffman was an Academy Award winning actor (Best Actor, 2005, Capote) who won critical praise for his work in a number of films (The Master, Moneyball, Doubt, Charlie Wilson’s War, to name but a few). He will be remembered as a master character actor, who could fill a role with layers and textures with just a few words or a simple gesture.
He is survived by his three children and his partner, Mimi O’Donnell.
