Tim Curry, the British actor whose film career included Disney’s Long John Silver in Muppet Treasure Island and Universal’s Farley Claymore in The Shadow, has died at 80. His longtime manager, Marcia Hurwitz, confirmed his death Wednesday. No cause was disclosed.
Curry’s best-known work reached far beyond those two films, but Disney and Universal gave him a run of memorable character parts across pirate adventure, swashbuckling fantasy, superhero pulp and military comedy.
Curry Played Long John Silver in Disney’s Muppet Treasure Island
In Disney’s 1996 Muppet Treasure Island, Curry played the human pirate Long John Silver opposite Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and the rest of the Muppet crew. The film adapts Robert Louis Stevenson’s treasure hunt, with Silver seizing Jim Hawkins’ map and taking him hostage.
The role put Curry at the center of a cast built around puppets and made his theatrical wit part of the film’s live-action anchor. The official Tim Curry filmography also lists the film as one of his screen roles.
Disney Cast Curry as Richelieu and Forte
Curry played Cardinal Richelieu in Disney’s 1993 The Three Musketeers. The cardinal plots to control the young king, giving Curry a larger-than-life villain in a traditional adventure film.
His Disney voice work included Forte, the living pipe organ in Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas. Curry later voiced Darth Sidious and Chancellor Palpatine in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, extending his connection to Disney-owned screen worlds beyond feature films.
Universal Cast Curry in The Shadow and McHale’s Navy
Universal’s 1994 comic-book film The Shadow cast Curry as Farley Claymore, a role listed in his official filmography and on Universal Pictures At Home’s cast page. Curry brought the same sharp, theatrical presence to the film’s pulp setting.
He returned to a Universal comedy in 1997’s McHale’s Navy, playing Major Vladikov. Universal cast Curry in the film, and his official filmography names the character.
His Filmography Also Included Home Alone 2 and Clue
Curry’s other widely recognized film roles included Wadsworth in Clue and Mr. Hector in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. His official filmography includes both titles alongside his Disney work.
For Disney viewers, Curry’s legacy runs from Long John Silver and Cardinal Richelieu to Forte and Palpatine. For Universal audiences, it includes Claymore and Vladikov, two sharply different parts in films that remain easy entry points into his screen career.
Sources: Tim Curry’s official filmography, official voice-work list, D23’s Tim Curry entry, D23’s Muppet Treasure Island page, D23’s The Three Musketeers page, Universal’s The Shadow page and Universal’s McHale’s Navy page.
Image: D23.