Sid Haig, a veteran actor known for his memorable roles in exploitation movies—with particular prominence coming in recent years, thanks to the horror films of Rob Zombie—passed away on Saturday. He was 80 years old.
Haig’s passing was confirmed by his wife, Susan L. Oberg, who shared the following message on Instagram:
Haig’s screen credits stretched all the way back to the early 1960s, starting with bit parts on shows like Batman in 1966 and Star Trek in 1967. His TV career picked up in the 1970s and ‘80s (a versatile character actor, he appeared on everything from Mission: Impossible to Electra Woman and Dyna Girl to Fantasy Island to MacGyver). Standing a towering 6' 4", he found his true niche appearing in horror and exploitation movies, with roles in cult classics like Spider Baby, THX 1138, Black Mama White Mama, Coffy, and Foxy Brown.
His big-screen resurgence began with a small but crucial role in Quentin Tarantino’s 1997 blaxploitation riff Jackie Brown (he played the judge). Then, in 2003, he played demented clown Captain Spaulding in Zombie’s House of 1000 Corpses, a role he’d reprise in The Devil’s Rejects and the recent 3 From Hell—with many, many roles in other horror and cult movies (Bone Tomahawk, Kill Bill Vol. 2, The Lords of Salem) keeping him busy over the last decade-plus. He was an unmistakable presence and—despite his imposing appearance and fondness for playing terrifying characters—was widely known to be a lovely person.
Here just a few of the tributes posted by those who knew him:
Needless to say, he’ll be missed. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends at this sad time.
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