Bernard Hill, a British actor best known for his supporting parts in the “Titanic” and “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, died on Sunday at the age of 79, his agent reported.
He gained worldwide notoriety for his role as Theoden, King of Rohan, in two of Peter Jackson’s three “The Lord of the Rings” films.
He also played Captain Edward Smith in the Oscar-winning 1997 epic romance “Titanic”.
His agent, Lou Coulson, confirmed that he died early Sunday morning.
His fiancée Alison and his son Gabriel were present at the time.
Alan Bleasdale, who wrote Boys from the Blackstuff, said Hill’s death was “a great loss and also a great surprise”.
“It was an astonishing, mesmeric performance – Bernard gave everything to that and you can see it in all the scenes. He became Yosser Hughes.”
He added: “I was desperate to work with him. Everything he did – his whole procedure for working, the manner in which he worked and his performance was everything that you could ever wish for.
“You always felt that Bernard would live forever. He had a great strength, physically and of personality.”
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Hill, who was born in Manchester and raised in Suffolk, was set to return to television in season two of The Responder, a BBC drama starring Martin Freeman, which premieres on Sunday.
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