Bud Cort, known for roles in Harold and Maude, Batman: The Animated Series, and Superman: The Animated Series, has passed away at the age of 77. Cort passed away on Wednesday due to complications from pneumonia after a lengthy illness (via THR), and our thoughts are with Cort’s family and friends at this incredibly difficult time.
Cort’s resume over the years has run the gamut of genres, but one performance that DCAU fans will always remember is Cort’s role as The Toyman in Superman: The Animated Series. Cort crafted a version of the longtime DC villain that was more lighthearted but with a palpable sinister edge. The character always felt like he could go over that edge at any minute, despite his more toy-based arsenal, and is one of the unforgettable villains that called Metropolis home. That said, he actually debuted in the DCAU in Batman: The Animated Series, and would return to the DCAU in another series down the line.
Bud Cort Delivered Unforgettable Performances in Live-Action and Animation
Bud Cort loved the theater and would find any way to be involved in it during the 1960s, and he would get his first major role in 1970 in Robert Altman’s M*A*S*H as Private Boone. Cort was massively busy during 1970, as he took part in projects like The Strawberry Statement, The Traveling Executioner, Gas! -Or- It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It, and Brewster McCloud.
Cort would get his next major breakout hit in 1971 with Harold and Maude, where he played Harold alongside Ruth Gordon as Maude. Cort would reveal in an interview with Trainwreck’d Society that the studio was stumped on how to publicize the film, but despite that hurdle, the film would go on to become a critical hit.
Cort would remain active in a host of films and shows throughout the ’70s and ’80s, including roles in Brave New World, Hysterical, Electric Dreams, Invaders from Mars, Telephone, and Love at Stake. He would also start to jump into more TV with roles in The Twilight Zone, Midnight Caller, and Dream On, but he would finally join the DC Animated Universe in 1992 with the role of Josiah Wormwood in Batman: The Animated Series.
He would follow that up with appearances in The Mask animated series in 1996, and then in 1998, he would return to the DCAU in Superman: The Animated Series with the role of Toyman, aka Winslow Schott. While he only actually appeared in two episodes of that series, it was a stellar year for performance, and most fans think of Cort’s interpretation to this day when they think of Toyman.
The character would also return in 2003 with Cort reprising the role in Static Shock, and then in 2006, Cort would play the role of the new Toyman in Justice League Unlimited. He continued to work in television with roles in Arrested Development, Ugly Betty, and Criminal Minds, and he would also be active in film with Coyote Ugly, Pollock, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, and The Little Prince.
Our thoughts are with Cort’s family and friends.
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