Acting Legend Christopher Plummer Passes Away

The world has lost another giant in the arena of stage and screen, as Oscar winner Christopher Plummer has passed away. Plummer’s family confirmed (per Deadline) that the Sound of Music star died peacefully today at his home in Connecticut at the age of 91. His wife Elaine Taylor was by his side.

Plummer’s passing takes away an actor with an almost unmatchable career. Best known to audiences around the world for his role in The Sound of Music, he was also the oldest person to ever win an Oscar when he captured the Best Supporting Actor statuette for Beginners at the age of 82 in 2013. He was also nominated for his work in All the Money in the World and The Last Station.

Plummer’s on-screen career spanned 70 years, starting after several years on the stage in Canada where he was born. His first screen role was in February of 1953 in a CBC production of Othello. Christopher Plummer went on to perform several stage productions, both in Canada and the US, before his first film role in 1958’s Stage Struck alongside Henry Fonda and Susan Strasberg. Plummer went on to appear in 1964’s The Fall of the Roman Empire before his most iconic roll as George Von Trapp opposite Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music. The film won five Oscars including Best Picture and remains a landmark among film musicals. It was also the top-grossing film of all-time for a while, beating Gone With The Wind’s then-record. Plummer, ironically, didn’t enjoy the film, calling it “so awful and sentimental and gooey” and avoided even referring to it by name.

The actor would proceed to star in a host of films throughout the 1960s including 1968’s Oedipus the King and 1969’s The Battle of Britain, and The Royal Hunt of the Sun. His success continued throughout the years, including a role in the classic 1980s miniseries The Thorn Birds, starring in The Man Who Would Be King, Dreamscape, and many other films.

Despite his success, he would not earn his first Oscar nomination until The Last Station in 2012. It was the year after that he notched his win. Plummer also had two Tony Awards and two Emmy Awards to his name, and a Grammy nominee for the children’s recording E.T.A. Hoffmann/Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker in 1986. He was given the Canadian Screen Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2016, and many other honors including being invested as Companion of the Order of Canada, at the time among Canada’s highest civilian honours, in 1968.

On behalf of 411, our condolences to the family, friends, and many fans the world over of Mr. Plummer. He will most certainly be missed.