‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘Titanic’ Actor Was 79

Bernard Hill, the actor recognized for enjoying King Théoden within the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and Captain Edward Smith in “Titanic,” has died. He was 79.

Hill died early on Sunday morning, his agent Lou Colson confirmed to Selection. He was together with his fiancée Alison and his son Gabriel. No reason behind loss of life was given.

Hill first got here to prominence as Yosser Hughes in Alan Bleasdale’s 1982 miniseries “Boys From the Blackstuff”; his character was recognized for his “gizza job” catchphrase. That very same yr, he portrayed Sergeant Putnam within the Richard Attenborough-directed movie “Gandhi.” Hill appeared in a number of British tv sequence between the ’70s and ’80s, together with “I, Claudius,” “Crown Court docket,” “Rooms,” “Fox” and “Jackanory.”

In 1997, Hill performed Captain Smith in James Cameron’s “Titanic,” which gained 11 Oscars. He then joined Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” franchise as King Théoden, showing in 2002’s “The Two Towers” and 2003’s “The Return of the King,” which additionally nabbed 11 Oscars. Hill appeared in two of the three movies with probably the most Academy Awards of all time thus far (“Ben-Hur” additionally achieved the document).

In 2015, Hill performed Duke of Norfolk, an uncle of Anne Boleyn, within the BBC miniseries “Wolf Corridor,” which gained the BAFTA for greatest drama sequence.

Hill was born on Dec. 17, 1944, in Blackley, Manchester. Throughout his appearing profession, which spanned over 5 many years, he labored on different notable movies akin to “Mr. Toad’s Wild Journey” (1996), “A Midsummer Evening’s Dream” (1999), “True Crime” (1999), “The Scorpion King” (2002), “Valkyrie” (2008) and “ParaNorman” (2012).

Hill will seem alongside Martin Freeman within the police drama “The Responder,” which begins airing its second season on BBC One this weekend.