Nicky Katt, the actor renowned for portraying tough villains in films and television over the past three decades, has died at the age of 54.
The news was confirmed by his attorney, John Sloss, and reports indicate that he passed away on April 8 in Burbank, California.
No cause of death has been revealed.
Katt began his career as a child actor with small roles in popular films like Gremlins and The ‘Burbs.
He eventually became a regular in the films of director Richard Linklater, appearing in Waking Life, SubUrbia, School of Rock, and Dazed and Confused.
In Dazed and Confused, Katt played the character Clint Bruno, who assaults Adam Goldberg’s character, Mike.
Upon learning of Katt’s death, Linklater expressed his heartfelt sentiments: “Nicky had a deep love for the character actors of cinema history, and I think he saw himself that way.
When I was auditioning actors for Dazed and Confused, I’d ask them what character in the ensemble they most related to or were interested in, and the majority talked about the bigger parts, naturally.
Nicky said he liked Clint.
I almost didn’t know what he was talking about: ‘You mean the 17th largest part in the movie?’ ‘Yeah.’
He made something unique out of it, bringing his wicked humour, unpredictability, and smouldering quality to it.
We worked up an entirely new scene for him and Matthew talking about car engines.
I think he probably over-filled all his roles, which makes him memorable.
Maybe he over-filled his life too, which, while often exasperating to those closest to him, makes him someone you’ll never forget.
That brilliant spark will be missed.”
Katt’s impressive filmography includes appearances in Steven Soderbergh’s The Limey, where he played Stacy the Hitman, as well as Hitler in Full Frontal.
His last film performance was in Behind the Candelabra.
He also had notable small roles in two Christopher Nolan movies: Insomnia and The Dark Knight, in addition to films like Joel Schumacher’s A Time to Kill and Batman & Robin.
Further credits include The Way of the Gun, Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof, and Robert Rodriguez’s Sin City and Planet Terror, where Rodriguez commented, “You could always count on Nicky Katt for many things.
He’d come in incredibly prepared for a role with costumes and props.
He’d come full of inventive and creative ideas that would make his characters pop off the screen and consistently have an audience howling.
He’d deliver lines that would constantly sound as unexpected as an ad lib, yet it was the text.
And if he did ad lib, it was always gold.
Even his physical comedy and timing was truly on another level.
Nicky was an absolute joy on and off the camera.
A true artist.
A friend.
It’s very sad to lose Nicky Katt.
But I can only be grateful I got to know him, work with him, and watch him create his own truly original brand of magic that will live for ever in his favourite medium.”
In the past decade, Katt primarily worked in television, notably playing the popular teacher Harry Senate on the series Boston Public.
Reflecting on his role in David Gordon Green’s Snow Angels in 2008, Katt stated, “I kind of am notorious for bringing a lot of humour to stuff, and not in a scene-stealing way, especially if something is really kind of heavy subject matter I’m kind of like oxygen for a drowning man.”
He acknowledged that while bad guys are often seen as the most fun roles, he had periods when he was solely typecast as the antagonist, particularly after Dazed and Confused.
However, he felt lucky to have the opportunity to play a diverse range of characters.
Katt’s television appearances also included Herbie: the Love Bug, Quincy, ME, Father Murphy, and Law and Order.
His last credit was in 2018, on the series Casual.
image source from：https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/apr/14/nicky-katt-dazed-and-confused-and-school-of-rock-actor-dies-aged-54
