News of his passing came from his son Kiefer: ‘He loved what he did and did what he loved’
Canadian actor Donald Sutherland has died at the age of 88. The news was shared on the social media platform X by his son Kiefer.
“With a heavy heart, I tell you that my father, Donald Sutherland, has passed away,” he wrote. “I personally think one of the most important actors in the history of film. Never daunted by a role, good, bad or ugly. He loved what he did and did what he loved, and one can never ask for more than that. A life well lived.”
Born in Saint John, N.B., on July 17, 1935, Sutherland’s acting career spanned more than 60 years. Although he began with small roles in British film and television in the late 1960s, he soon transitioned into larger Hollywood fare, and in 1970 starred as “Hawkeye” Pierce in Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H.
That led to leading roles through the decade, including Don’t Look Now (1973) and the war film The Eagle Has Landed (1976). But he worked steadily throughout his entire life; his last appearance was in last year’s period drama Miranda’s Victim.
Film fans of various generations probably have different memories of the multi-faceted actor. In 1977 he played Canadian physician Norman Bethune in the film of the same name. In 1980 he was a conflicted father in Ordinary People. In 1991 he played an intelligence officer in Oliver Stone’s JFK. He portrayed an astronaut in 2000’s Space Cowboys. And starting in 2012, he was known as President Snow, the villain of the Hunger Games series of movies.
Sutherland has been called one of the best actors never to have received an Academy Award nomination., but he did receive an Academy Honorary Award in 2017. His accolades also include being made an Officer and later a Companion of the Order of Canada; stars on both the Canadian and Hollywood Walks of Fame; and a Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for lifetime artistic achievement. Last year, Canada Post released a commemorative postage stamp in his honour.
Married three times, Sutherland had five children, including actors Kiefer, Rossif and Angus Sutherland.
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