Editor’s note: The original March 2023 version of this article was lost. The Lee Daily Register rebuilt it in October 2026 from the reporting cited below, and added what was learned in the weeks after his death.
Lance Reddick, the actor best known as Lt. Cedric Daniels on HBO’s “The Wire” and as Charon in the “John Wick” films, died Friday at his home in Los Angeles. He was 60.
His publicist, Mia Hansen, said he died suddenly of natural causes, NBC News reported.
A musician before he was an actor
Before television, Reddick trained as a musician. He attended the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester, where he studied classical composition and played piano, according to ABC News, as quoted in the school’s news highlights after his death.
He broke through on HBO’s prison drama “Oz,” playing an undercover officer sent inside, before landing the role of Daniels on “The Wire.” He later starred in Amazon’s “Bosch” and played Charon across the “John Wick” series, NBC News noted.
What happened next
Reddick’s death certificate, made public by TMZ in April 2023, listed ischemic heart disease and atherosclerotic coronary artery disease as causes of death. His family disputed that. Attorney James Hornstein said no autopsy had been performed and that the listed conditions were wholly inconsistent with Reddick’s lifestyle and medical history, FOX 11 Los Angeles reported.
Reports differed on the neighborhood where he was found. Some, citing TMZ, said Studio City, while NBC affiliates reported police responded to a home in the Valley Village area. Both are in the San Fernando Valley section of Los Angeles.
