'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,' 'Armageddon' Star Dead at 81

Udo Kier, the star of Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994) and more than 200 other films, has died. He was 81. 

Udo Kier Dead at 81

Kier died on Sunday, Nov. 23, in Palm Springs, CA. His partner, Delbert McBride, confirmed the actor’s passing to Variety. At this time, no cause of death has been disclosed. The German-born film star totaled 282 acting credits throughout his 59-year on-screen career, including seven titles in various stages of production, according to IMDb. Kier will next be seen in Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent, starring Wagner Maura, which hits cinemas on Nov. 28 and has been garnering a healthy amount of Oscar buzz.

He Appeared in Nearly 300 Movies and TV Shows

Throughout his career, Kier starred in numerous music videos and video games in addition to his television and movie appearances. He was best known for his title roles in Flesh for Frankenstein (1973) and Blood for Dracula (1974), two over-the-top gore epics directed by Paul Morrissey and “presented” by Andy Warhol. Kier became known to American audiences with his turn in Gus Van Sant’s My Own Private Idaho (1991) before transitioning to mainstream Hollywood work, such as Ace Ventura, Armageddon, and Blade (both 1998).

Later in his career, Kier became a staple of Danish director Lars von Trier’s feel-bad ouvré. He appeared in Breaking the Waves (1996), Dancer in the Dark (2000), Dogville (2003), Melancholia (2011), and Nymphomaniac: Vol. II (2013) for the controversial director. Kier played many villainous roles throughout his career. Most notably, of late, he played Adolf Hitler in Amazon Prime’s comedic thriller Hunters (2020). He also played a baddie in Mendonça Filho’s Bacurau (2019), which, along with the 2021 dark comedy Swan Song, earned the actor some of the finest reviews of his career.