Michael Madsen, 'Reservoir Dogs' and 'Kill Bill' star, dies at 67 [View all]
Source: AP
By ANDREW DALTON and ITZEL LUNA
Updated 4:43 PM CDT, July 3, 2025
LOS ANGELES (AP) Michael Madsen, the actor best known for his coolly menacing, steely-eyed, often sadistic characters in the films of Quentin Tarantino including Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill: Vol. 2, has died.
Madsen was found unresponsive in his home in Malibu, California, on Thursday morning and pronounced dead, Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department Watch Commander Christopher Jauregui said. He is believed to have died of natural causes and authorities do not suspect any foul play was involved. Madsens manager Ron Smith said cardiac arrest was the apparent cause. He was 67.
Madsens career spanned more than 300 credits stretching back to the early 1980s, many in low-budget and independent films. He often played low-level thugs, gangsters and shady cops in small roles. Tarantino would use that identity, but make him a main character.
His torture of a captured police officer in Tarantinos 1992 directorial debut Reservoir Dogs, in which Madsens black-suited bank robber Vic Mr. Blonde Vega severs the mans ear while dancing to Stealers Wheels Stuck in the Middle with You was an early career-defining moment for both director and actor.

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