
Michael Madsen
- Known for
- Acting
- Born
- September 25, 1957
- Died
- July 3, 2025 (aged 67)
- Birthplace
- Chicago, Illinois, USA
Biography
Michael Madsen (Michael Søren Madsen, September 25, 1957 – July 3, 2025) was an American actor, poet, and photographer, born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Elaine, a filmmaker and author, and Calvin, a firefighter. He began his career at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, where he served as an apprentice under John Malkovich and appeared in a production of Of Mice and Men. His screen debut came in Against All Hope (1982), followed by a small role in WarGames (1983). His breakout performance was as the psychopathic Mr. Blonde in Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992), which launched him into a long association with Tarantino — he appeared in five of his films, including Kill Bill: Volume 2 (2004), The Hateful Eight (2015), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019). He also worked as a voice actor in video games including Grand Theft Auto III and DRIV3R. He was found unresponsive in his Malibu, California home on July 3, 2025, and died of cardiac arrest at age 67. His notable film credits include WarGames (1983) (Matthew Broderick, Daryl Hannah), Thelma & Louise (1991) (Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis), Reservoir Dogs (1992) (Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth), Free Willy (1993) (Jason James Richter, Leelee Sobieski), The Getaway (1994) (Harrison Ford, Rene Russo), Species (1995) (Sandra Bullock, Al Pacino), Donnie Brasco (1997) (Al Pacino, Johnny Depp), Die Another Day (2002) (Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry), Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) (Uma Thurman, David Carradine), Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004) (Uma Thurman, David Carradine), Sin City (2005) (Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba), The Hateful Eight (2015) (Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell), and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019) (Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt).
Known For
Photos
Filmography

The First Circle
Movie · as Eli Brevil

A Corpse in Kensington
Movie · as Michael

Saturday at the Starlight
Movie · as Frank Gunt

Cookbook for Southern Housewives
Movie · as Kingsley

Ava
Movie · as Peter
The Witching Hour
Movie
Sara Sarita
Movie

Legend of the White Dragon
Movie · as Max Reed

Blood Behind Us
Movie · as Reed Philibosian

Concessions
Movie · as Rex Fuel

Mr. Wonderful
Movie · as Brian Fenton

Demon Hunters
Movie

Icons Unearthed: Quentin Tarantino
TV · as Self - Actor - Reservoir Dogs & Kill Bill · 6 eps

Resurrection Road
Movie · as Quantrill

Queen of Manhattan
Movie · as District Attorney

Sinatra! Eternity
Movie · as Robert (Bob) Nelson

The Things We Carry
Movie

South of Hope Street
Movie · as Benjamin

Arena Wars
Movie · as Samson

Final Wager
Movie · as Ian

Max Dagan
Movie · as Don Clancy

Prepare to Die
Movie · as Sheriff Hansen

Spirit Riser
Movie · as Narrator (voice)

Dark Feathers: Dance of the Geisha
Movie · as Kensei

Once Upon a Time in Hollyweird
Movie · as Self

Monster Mash
Movie · as Doctor Frankenstein

Baba Yaga: Assassins Revenge
Movie · as Logan Bergman

DinoGator
Movie · as Layton

Chuck Zito: An American Story
Movie · as Self

Assault on Hill 400
Movie · as General Cota

Buckle Up
Movie

Necronomicon
Movie

The Lurking Fear
Movie · as Officer Hansen

Outlaw Johnny Black
Movie · as Dutch

Waking Karma
Movie · as Paul

Grace
Movie · as Man (Voice)

Until We Meet Again
Movie · as Detective Morrison

Incarnation
Movie · as Peter

The Wraith Within
Movie · as Sheriff Townsend

Death Count
Movie · as Detective Casey

American Badass: A Michael Madsen Retrospective
Movie · as Self

Damon's Revenge
Movie · as Damon

Run Raven Run
Movie · as Narrator (voice)

Ten Million Throwaways
Movie · as Narrator

Playing with Stars
Movie

American Night
Movie · as Lord Samuel Morgan

Red Prophecies
Movie · as Richard Tyler

Burial Ground Massacre
Movie · as Damon

Christmas Thieves
Movie · as Vince

Every Last One of Them
Movie · as Bill
Quentin Tarantino: From a Movie Buff to a Hollywood Legend
Movie · as Self (archive footage)

Red Handed
Movie · as Lou

Unbelievable!!!!!
Movie · as President Ben Dover

The Garden Left Behind
Movie · as Kevin

Nishabdham
Movie · as Richard Dawkins

2 Graves in the Desert
Movie · as Vince

Angels Fallen
Movie · as Balthazar

Puppy Love
Movie · as Wesley

Shark Season
Movie · as James

Serpent in the Bottle
Movie · as Joe

Dirty Fears
Movie · as Michael

Conjuring: The Book of the Dead
Movie · as Jefferson

Arctic Dogs
Movie · as Duke (voice)

Rock, Paper, Scissors
Movie · as Doyle Dechert

Trading Paint
Movie · as Linsky

Once Upon a Time in… Hollywood
Movie · as 'Bounty Law' - Sheriff Hackett

Welcome to Acapulco
Movie · as Hyde

Born2Race
Movie · as Bobby Unser

Primitiva
Movie · as Narrator (voice)

QT8: The First Eight
Movie · as Self

The Hateful Eight
TV · as Joe Gage · 4 eps

Q-4: Dream Corporation
Movie

Dirty Dealing
Movie · as Dean
The Journey Ahead
Movie · as Max

Grindhouse Nightmares
Movie

Spatss!
Movie · as Gang Leader

Love Addict
Movie · as Mr. Dickinson

Megalodon
Movie · as Admiral King

Papa
Movie · as Ivan

Garlic and Gunpowder
Movie · as Jason

Assassins Revenge
Movie · as Detective Frank McMillian
Dead On Time
Movie · as Mike McGuirk

Hangover in Death Valley
Movie · as Ted (archive footage)
A Night in Jail
Movie · as Captain

Devil's Domain
Movie · as Bill

The Wrong Neighbor
Movie · as Coach Jaworski

The Broken Key
Movie · as Tully DeMarco

Unfallen
Movie · as General McCallister

Gasoline
Movie · as Макс, баща на Дим

Back in the Day
Movie · as Enzo

Magi
Movie · as Lawrence Irlam

Vigilante Diaries
Movie · as Moreau

Kidnapped in Romania
Movie · as Mihai

Dennis Hopper: Uneasy Rider
Movie · as Self

Last Man Club
Movie · as Stearman Pilot

Along for the Ride
Movie · as Self

Talons
Movie · as George Fitzgerald

Emigratis
TV · as Self · 1 ep

Master of Photography
TV · 1 ep

Hope Lost
Movie · as Manol

A Hitman in London
Movie · as The Boss

The Lost Tree
Movie · as John

The Hateful Eight
Movie · as Joe Gage

Lumberjack Man
Movie · as Dr. Peter Shirtcliff

Death in the Desert
Movie · as Ray Easler

Flipped
Movie · as Casey

No Deposit
Movie · as Peter Shay

Lady Psycho Killer
Movie · as Doctor Douglass

Sacred Blood
Movie · as Detective Brennan

Bikini Inception
Movie · as Himself

Diamond Cartel
Movie · as Mike

Big Time in Hollywood, Fl
TV · as Harvey Scoles · 5 eps

Powers
TV · as SuperShock · 10 eps

Non escludo il ritorno
Movie · as Paul Hummel

2047: Sights of Death
Movie · as Lobo

Express 'Moscow-Russia'
Movie · as продюсер Милы

The Ninth Cloud
Movie · as Bob

Turn Around Jake
Movie · as Russell O'Malley

Beyond the Game
Movie · as Robert

Water Wars
Movie · as Bane

Bra Wars – Hollywood’s Affair With The Bra
Movie · as Self

Gabrielle
Movie · as Edward Sheehan

Garbage
Movie · as Michael

Infected
Movie · as Louis Hartley

Along the Roadside
Movie · as Jerry

I'm in Love with a Church Girl
Movie · as Frank Harris

Ashley
Movie · as Bill

Terrible Angels
Movie · as Ben Nolan

ICE Agent
Movie · as Carlos Garcia

A Sierra Nevada Gunfight
Movie · as Sheriff Sawyer
Madoff: Made Off with America
Movie · as Agent Kennedy

Lionhead
Movie · as Walter Powell

Nomad the Beginning
Movie · as Wolf

Alien Battlefield
Movie

Golden Boy
TV · as Walter Clark Sr. · 2 eps

Eldorado
Movie · as Ted

Loosies
Movie · as Lt. 'Sully' Sullivan

Piranhaconda
Movie · as Prof. Lovegrove

Magic Boys
Movie · as Terence

Sins
Movie · as Don Mancino

Prince of the City
Movie · as Ben Carlton

Beyond the Trophy
Movie · as Cole Lambert

Ace of Spades: Bad Destiny
Movie · as Sef

Cole Younger & The Black Train
Movie · as Marshall Stallings

The 5th Execution
Movie · as Rik

The Lion of Judah
Movie · as Boss (voice)

Not Another Not Another Movie
Movie · as Lester Storm

A Cold Day in Hell
Movie · as U.S. Marshal Stallings

Amsterdam Heavy
Movie · as Keele

Dirty Little Trick
Movie · as Vito

The Forest
Movie · as Lt. Brandon Ross

Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair
Movie · as Budd (Sidewinder)

Bob's Burgers
TV · as Kevin Costner (voice) · 1 ep

Celebrity Big Brother's Bit on the Side
TV · as Self · 1 ep

The Portal
Movie · as Dr. Azirra

Let the Game Begin
Movie · as Dr. Turner

The Killing Jar
Movie · as Doe

The Big I Am
Movie · as Martell

Federal
Movie · as Sam Gibson

The Brazen Bull
Movie

Terror Trap
Movie · as Hotel Operator

Trader Games
Movie · as William

Corruption.Gov
Movie · as Senator John Mordire

Six Days in Paradise
Movie · as Rich McShane

Zulu Gumball
TV · as Self · 8 eps

Blue Bloods
TV · as John · 1 ep

Hawaii Five-0
TV · as Roy Parrish · 1 ep

Break
Movie · as The Associate

Road of No Return
Movie · as J. Marcone

Hired Gun
Movie · as Dan Moeller

Clear Lake, WI
Movie · as The Reverend

The Tomb
Movie · as George

The Way
Movie · as Commander

The Bleeding
Movie · as Father Roy

Gloves of Stone
Movie · as Willie

Green Lantern: First Flight
Movie · as Kilowog (voice)

Serbian Scars
Movie · as Dreq

Lost in the Woods
Movie · as Stuart Bunka

Outrage: Born in Terror
Movie · as Farragut

Christmas Crash
Movie · as Joseph Johnson

Amazing Racer
Movie · as Dave Blair

The Face is Familiar
Movie · as Himself

Creepshow Raw: Insomnia
Movie · as Barry

You Might As Well Live
Movie · as Clinton Manitoba

Deep Winter
Movie · as Dean

Celebrity Ghost Stories
TV · as Self · 1 ep

Last Hour
Movie · as Monk

Crash and Burn
Movie · as Vincent Scaillo

Hell Ride
Movie · as The Gent

45 R.P.M.
Movie · as Major Baxter

House
Movie · as Tin Man/Officer Lawdale

Killer's Freedom
Movie · as Leo Ibiza

No Bad Days
Movie · as Lester

Eyes Front
Movie

Vice
Movie · as Max Walker

The Long Shadow of Dirty Harry
Movie · as Self

A Moral Right: The Politics of Dirty Harry
Movie · as Self

The Business End: Violence in Cinema
Movie · as Self

The Evolution of Clint Eastwood
Movie · as Self

The Craft of Dirty Harry
Movie · as Self

Being Michael Madsen
Movie · as Self

Strength and Honour
Movie · as Sean Kelleher

Croc
Movie · as Croc Hawkins

Boarding Gate
Movie · as Miles Rennberg

Tooth and Nail
Movie · as Jackal - Rover

Living & Dying
Movie · as Agent Lind

Afghan Knights
Movie · as Cooper

Machine
Movie · as Ray

L.A. Dicks
Movie · as Steven Miller

Cosmic Radio
Movie · as Senator Atwood

UKM: The Ultimate Killing Machine
Movie · as Major Blevins

The Last Drop
Movie · as J.T. Colt

Scary Movie 4
Movie · as Oliver

Prohibition Opens the Floodgates
Movie · as Self

Morality and the Code: A How-to Manual for Hollywood
Movie · as Self

All In
Movie · as Seal

Canes
Movie · as Guillermo List

BloodRayne
Movie · as Vladimir

Southern Comfort
Movie

Film Noir: Bringing Darkness to Light
Movie · as Self

The Maltese Falcon: One Magnificent Bird
Movie · as Self

Hoboken Hollow
Movie · as J.T. Goldman

Molls and Dolls: The Women of Gangster Films
Movie · as Self

Sin City
Movie · as Bob

Chasing Ghosts
Movie · as Kevin Harrison

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Movie · as Maugrim (voice)

Jacked$
Movie · as Boss

Gangland: Bullets over Hollywood
Movie

Law of Corruption
Movie · as American
The Distance: Boxing from the Inside Out
Movie

Tilt
TV · as Don 'The Matador' Everest · 9 eps

Kill Bill: Vol. 2
Movie · as Budd 'Sidewinder'

Frankenstein
Movie · as Detec. Harker

Blueberry
Movie · as Wallace Sebastian Blount

The Making of 'Kill Bill Vol. 2'
Movie · as Self

Sam Peckinpah's West: Legacy of a Hollywood Renegade
Movie · as Self

On Air with Ryan Seacrest
TV · as Self · 1 ep

Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Movie · as Budd

My Boss's Daughter
Movie · as T.J.

44 Minutes: The North Hollywood Shoot-Out
Movie · as Frank McGregor

Vampires Anonymous
Movie · as Geno

Thelma & Louise: The Last Journey
Movie · as Self

Pauly Shore Is Dead
Movie · as Michael Madsen

Die Another Day
Movie · as Falco

The Real Deal
Movie · as Baker Jacks

Primal Instinct
Movie · as Russ
Welcome to America
Movie · as Special Agent Leon Fogel

The Thief & the Stripper
Movie · as Jimmie D.

CSI: Miami
TV · as Cooper 'Coop' Daly · 1 ep

Extreme Honor
Movie · as Sparks

Fall
Movie · as Jeremy Banes

The Ghost
Movie · as Dan Olinghouse

Pressure Point
Movie · as Jed Griffin

Choke
Movie · as Will

L.A.P.D.: To Protect And To Serve
Movie · as James Alexander

Outlaw
Movie · as Conner

42K
Movie · as Narrator

Animal Precinct
TV · 95 eps

Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
TV · as Self · 1 ep

Celebrity Big Brother
TV · as Self · 1 ep

24
TV · as Jim Ricker · 4 eps

Big Apple
TV · as Terry Maddock · 8 eps

The Alternate
Movie · as Agent Briggs

The Inspectors 2: A Shred of Evidence
Movie · as Joe

High Noon
Movie · as Frank Miller

Bad Guys
Movie · as Jay Peters

The Price of Air
Movie · as Mr. Ball

Luck of the Draw
Movie · as Zippo

The Stray
Movie · as Ben

Sacrifice
Movie · as Tyler Pierce

Voodoo Dawn
Movie · as Frank Barlow

Ultimate Target
Movie · as Uncle

The Florentine
Movie · as Whitey

Supreme Sanction
Movie · as Dalton

Flat Out
Movie · as Gene

Ballad of the Nightingale
Movie · as Giovanni

Species II
Movie · as Press Lenox

The Sender
Movie · as Dallas Grayson

Papertrail
Movie · as FBI Agent Brad Abraham

Rough Draft
Movie · as Haynes

Detour
Movie · as Burl Rogers
Steve McQueen: The King of Cool
Movie · as Self

Vengeance Unlimited
TV · as Mr. Chapel · 16 eps

Donnie Brasco
Movie · as Dominick 'Sonny Black' Napolitano

Surface to Air
Movie · as Gunnery Sgt. Zach Massin

The Maker
Movie · as Skarney

Executive Target
Movie · as Nick James

The Girl Gets Moe
Movie · as Donnelly

Catherine's Grove
Movie · as Joe Mason

Mulholland Falls
Movie · as Eddie Hall

The Last Days of Frankie the Fly
Movie · as Sal

The Winner
Movie · as Wolf

Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home
Movie · as Glen Greenwood

Species
Movie · as Preston Lennox

Red Line
Movie · as Mr. Lawrence

Man with a Gun
Movie · as John Wilbur Hardin

MADtv
TV · as Self · 1 ep

The Getaway
Movie · as Rudy Travis

Wyatt Earp
Movie · as Virgil Earp

Who Do You Think You're Fooling?
Movie · as Mr. Blonde (archive footage)

Dead Connection
Movie · as Det. Matt Dickson

Blue Tiger
Movie · as Gun Salesman (uncredited)

Season of Change
Movie · as Randy Parker

Free Willy
Movie · as Glen Greenwood

Beyond the Law
Movie · as Blood

Trouble Bound
Movie · as Harry Talbot

Money for Nothing
Movie · as Detective Laurenzi

A House in the Hills
Movie · as Mickey

Almost Blue
Movie · as Morris

Inside Edge
Movie · as Richard Montana

Reservoir Dogs
Movie · as Mr. Blonde / Vic Vega

Straight Talk
Movie · as Steve

To Kill For
Movie · as Cliff Burden

Baby Snatcher
Movie · as Cal Hudson

Thelma & Louise
Movie · as Jimmy

The Doors
Movie · as Tom Baker

Montana
Movie · as Pierce

The End of Innocence
Movie · as Earl

Gabriel's Fire
TV · 1 ep

The Outsiders
TV · as Mick Jenkins · 1 ep

Kill Me Again
Movie · as Vince Miller

Blood Red
Movie · as Enzio

Quantum Leap
TV · as Blue · 1 ep

Iguana
Movie · as Sebastián

Shadows in the Storm
Movie · as Earl
Sidewalks Entertainment
TV · 1 ep

War and Remembrance
TV · as 'Foof' Turhall · 1 ep

The Killing Time
Movie · as Stu

Jake and the Fatman
TV · 1 ep

Tour of Duty
TV · as Sergeant Greg Block · 1 ep

Crime Story
TV · as Johnny Fosse · 2 eps

Our Family Honor
TV · as Augie Danzig · 13 eps

The Natural
Movie · as Bump Bailey

Racing with the Moon
Movie · as Frank

Miami Vice
TV · as Sally Alvarado · 1 ep

WarGames
Movie · as Steve

Special Bulletin
Movie · as Jimmy Lenox

Diner
Movie · as Boogie

The Hitchhiker
TV · as John Hampton · 1 ep

Against All Hope
Movie · as Cecil Moe

St. Elsewhere
TV · as Mike O'Connor · 2 eps

Cagney & Lacey
TV · 1 ep







