William Hurt, who rose to fame as hapless lawyer Ned Racine in “Body Heat” and won an Oscar for Best Actor for “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” portraying a gay man who shares a Brazilian prison cell with a revolutionary, died at his home in Portland, Oregon, on Sundays. He was 71.
One son, Alexander Hurt, said the cause was complications from prostate cancer.
mr. Tall, blond, and speaking in a measured cadence that lent a cerebral quality to his characters, Hurt was a protagonist in some of the most popular films of the 1980s, including “The Big Chill” (1983), “Children of a Lesser God ” (1986), “Broadcast News” (1987) and “The Accidental Tourist” (1988).
In later years, Mr. Hurt from lead actor in supporting roles and was nominated for an Academy Award for a fourth time for “A History of Violence” (2005).
Janet Maslin wrote in DailyExpertNews in 1985 about Mr. Hurt and his opponent, Raul Julia, in ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’.
“Mr. Hurt won a well-deserved Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival for a performance that is cunning at first, carefully nurtured, and finally moves in profound, unexpected ways,” she wrote. Hollywood trivia will be an extremely moving film about masculinity, heroism and love.”
Despite his successes as a leading man in Hollywood, he told The Times in 1990 that “theatre is a language I speak or am more attuned to than English.”
“Even one moment on stage is a glacier of understanding,” he added. “There’s the work. And it is just as fascinating to study as any other science.”
In a 2009 interview with The Times, he explained, “I don’t have to be the star physically. My biggest offer is my concept. It’s not my face.”
His approach, he said, was to “basically try to make my body a matter of Silly Putty as much as possible, and in a way make that sculpture fit perfectly with themes and the metaphors present in the game.”
A full obituary is being prepared.
Christine Chung and Neil Genzlinger reporting contributed.