One of the most resistant figures in cinema and especially in US TV, Lance Reddick, passed away at the age of only 60. Let’s remember him through his roles, all iconic, from television to cinema: we will see him again in John Wick 4.
Sixty. These are the years in which she left us Lance Reddickunforgettable television presence from Oz e The Wire until Fringe e American Horror Storywhich we are about to review in what becomes, inexplicably, his last role, namely the concierge of John Wick, whose fourth chapter will be in theaters from March 23rd. Versatile interpreter yet extremely coherent with himself, preferring granite, mysterious, disturbing, tough figures who, thanks to his physical presence and his inscrutable and penetrating gaze, have remained firm in the collective imagination. Let’s try to remember him through his most iconic roles.
Oz e The Wire
Born in Baltimore, he began on TV in 1996 in an episode of New York Undercover and in cinema two years later in Alfonso Cuaron’s Paradise Lost to then continue to fill the two screens with his physical and interpretative presence. Married to Stephanie Day since 2011, he has never given the opportunity to talk about himself except for his iconic roles, confirming his composure and his toughness, on both sides of the law, in the characters he has interpreted. His first big chance came from HBO with the prison series Oz, where in the fourth season he was able to exploit his seemingly granite and inscrutable gaze in the role of the detective Johnny Basilbetter known by his undercover identity, Desmond Mobayinfiltrating the Oswald State Correctional Facility as an inmate, bringing out all the ugliness without discounting maximum security prisons.
HBO always brings him even more into the television Olympus as Cedric Daniels in The Wire, another cable jewel, for many the best series ever made ever, set right in his native Baltimore which showed like no other all the facets and points of view of the relationship between the police and organized crime. A harsh and raw portrait of American society again. Once again an ambivalent character, his Cedric Daniels, a highly esteemed police lieutenant famous for always playing by the rules but who finds himself passing to the other side of the law, allied with his nemesis, McNulty, when he discovers the police corruption. His relationship with the team and with his sweet wife Marla is the confirmation of his honesty and tenacity, thanks to which he maintains direct and sincere relationships.
Fringe: the series that most of all has united science fiction and humanity
Lost, Fringe e American Horror Story
The other big opportunity comes for Lance Reddick on generalist TV. The producers of Lost Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse wanted him in the series created together with JJ Abrams and Jeffrey Lieber, after seeing him in the HBO serials, just as happened with Harold Perrineau (Michael Dawson), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Mr. Eko) and Ken Leung (Miles Straume). A mysterious and creepy character, that is Matthew Abaddonan Oceanic Airlines lawyer who is soon revealed to be Charles Widmore’s payroll and the one who recruited Naomi, Daniel, Miles, Charlotte and Frank as crew members of the freighter.
And Lost it’s a short step to Fringe – given the producers themselves involved – and who better than him to play Olivia’s boss, Phillip Broyles, in all five seasons of the serial that most of all has united humanity and science fiction, telling us a familiar story through the Multiverse. His internal security special agent in charge of the Fringe Division, manages the investigation into the so-called “Scheme” and will soon be forced to learn to go beyond their beliefs and convictions. Reddick will thus once again pass from one side of the “border” to the other as a tradition for his characters: especially in the third season, the apex of the parallel universes and the two Broyles. Thanks to his versatility and restlessness transmitted through an apparently calm and glacial gaze, he is chosen by Ryan Murphy to be Legba Stadiumthe demon linked to black magic voodoo, in the third season of American Horror Story, the one focused on the Coven of Witches, who will also return in the eighth crossover season with Murder House dedicated to the Apocalypse.
John Wick and video games
At the cinema we have seen him in many action and high voltage films but the most iconic role is certainly that of concierge dell’Hotel Continental, the place where most of the events take place, in the saga dedicated to Keanu Reeves’ John Wick. He shared the scene, as well as with the protagonist, especially with Ian McShane, who plays the manager of the hotel. Its receptionist is always present at the desk, acts as a go-between for its manager and handles any task that revolves around the hotel with professionalism, elegance, coolness and calm. An irresistible mix also thanks to its interpreter as well as the characterization given to all those who populate the John Wick universe.
John Wick: how to catch up on streaming the saga with Keanu Reeves
Incredibly it is also the last role in which we will see him, shortly in the cinema in John Wick 4, although in a certain sense the character will still live on in a younger version in the prequel series The Continental, which will be available in Italy on Prime Video . In short, we will see Lance Reddick again among the stars, just like in the video games in which he took part, without sparing himself in terms of dubbing and video capture, from Quantum Break a Destiny e Horizon: even in the latter case, his character, Sylens, we should see again – in some form – in the future.
