In tragic news for movie buffs, Michael Madsen was found dead in his Malibu home. He was 67. According to media reports, the cause of his death is claimed to be cardiac arrest. His media representative also confirmed the news of his demise by issuing a statement to news outlets. Michael Madsen Dies at 67: ‘Reservoir Dogs’ and ‘Kill Bill’ Star Passes Away From Cardiac Arrest at Malibu Home – Reports.

Although Michael Madsen had appeared in more than 300 movies, he was best known among cinephiles for his association with director Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino's breakout directorial Reservoir Dogs, which came out in 1992, also brought the spotlight on Michael Madsen in this crime thriller. Despite starring heavyweights like Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi, Lawrence Tierney, and Tarantino himself, Madsen managed to stand out thanks to his sadistic portrayal of Vic Vega aka Mr Blonde.

The sequence where he tortures a captured police officer for information while dancing to "Stuck in the Middle With You" is considered one of the most iconic scenes in the history of cinema. When Reservoir Dogs was remade in Hindi by Sanjay Gupta as Kaante, Mahesh Manjrekar had essayed the role in the remake.

Tarantino loved associating with Madsen, which also explains why he repeatedly cast him in movies like Kill Bill Vol 1 and 2, The Hateful Eight, and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Apart from these movies, Michael Madsen also did notable work in films like WarGames, The Natural, The Doors, Thelma & Louise, Free Willy, Species, Donnie Brasco, among others. He had also done many direct-to-video movies that were quite forgettable.

But do you remember him doing an Indian film, a horror movie at that?

'Nishabdham' aka 'Silence'

Nishabdham was a Telugu supernatural mystery thriller directed by Hemant Madhukar. The movie starred Anushka Shetty and R Madhavan in the lead and was shot entirely in Seattle, USA. It was originally pitched as a silent film in the vein of Kamal Haasan's Pushpak. However, as the film developed in production, the director added dialogues as it was then envisioned that the movie might have international potential.

To add to that international value, the makers cast Michael Madsen in the role of a police officer, Captain Richard Dawkins, who is investigating a series of murders. It was a crucial role and had its part to play in the central mystery. Nishabdham, which was also dubbed in Tamil, also starred Anjali, Shalini Pandey, and Subbaraju. Nishabdham Movie Review: Anushka Shetty-R Madhavan’s Amazon Prime Film Is Lazy Thriller With a Lazier Michael Madsen.

Watch the Trailer of 'Nishabdham':

The movie premiered directly on Prime Video on October 2, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic’s first phase. Upon release, the film faced highly negative reviews that criticised the direction and writing. Michael Madsen's performance was also not well-received. It is quite tragic that the actor who gave such a deranged performance in Reservoir Dogs became the weakest link in his only Indian movie, which was also not very good.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 04, 2025 12:37 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).