Michael J. Pollard, an Oscar-nominated actor who starred in “Bonnie and Clyde” and in Rob Zombie’s horror film “House of 1000 Corpses,” has died. He was 80.
Zombie broke the news on his Facebook page Friday morning. A representative for Pollard did not immediately respond to TheWrap for comment. Dawn Walker, a longtime friend of Pollard, told The New York Times that he died of cardiac arrest on Thursday at a hospital in Los Angeles.
“We have lost another member of our ‘House of 1000 Corpses’ family. I woke up to the news that Michael J. Pollard had died. I have always loved his work and his truly unique on screen presence,” Zombie said. “He was one of the first actors I knew I had to work with as soon as I got my first film off the ground. He will be missed.”
Pollard got his start in television beginning in the late ’50s through the ’60s, but he broke out as C.W. Moss, the wiry accomplice to Bonnie and Clyde who ultimately turns in the gangsters to the police in the film starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway from 1967. He was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his work and would later star in films such as “Dirty Little Billy,” “Melvin and Howard,” “Roxanne,” “Scrooged” and “Tango & Cash.” He also was nominated for a BAFTA for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles after starring in “Bonnie and Clyde.”
The New Jersey-born actor more recently starred in Zombie’s 2003 cult film “House of 1000 Corpses” as the character Stucky, one of his last film roles. His final role was “The Woods” in 2012, and he has two projects still listed in production.
“Michael J. Pollard was one of a kind. Made every film he was in better. You sat up and took notice,” Larry Karaszewski, the producer of “Dolemite Is My Name,” said on Twitter. “I met him once on the street in Beverly Hills and tried to pay him a compliment. He growled at me. I mean – literally growled at me. It was a perfect moment.”