Bernard Hill, ‘Titanic’ & ‘Lord of the Rings’ Actor, Dies at 79

Bernard Hill, the British actor especially remembered for his work in the blockbusters “Titanic” and the “Lord of the Rings” films, died Sunday at 79, The New York Times reports.

His death was confirmed in a family statement without any information as to where he died or the cause.

Born December 17, 1944, in Blackley, England, he chose to study acting out of the blue, graduating from Manchester Polytechnic in 1970.

His first of approximately 130 TV and movie credits was an appearance on the British TV show “Childhood” (1974). He was particularly well-known in the U.K. for his work as Yosser Hughes in “The Black Stuff,” a 1980 TV movie, and on the 1982 miniseries “Boys from the Blackstuff.”

Hill appeared in the films “A Dirty Knight’s Work” (1976), “It Could Happen to You” (1976), “The Sailor’s Return” (1980), “Gandhi” (1980), “The Bounty” (1984), “No Surrender” (1985), “Shirley Valentine” (1989), “Madagascar Skin” (1995), “The Ghost and the Darkness” (1996), and others leading up to his most widely seen performance, as Captain Smith in “Titanic” (1997).

In the classic film, his character is handed some of the blame for the luxury liner’s fate. He is memorably seen standing stoically at the wheel of the ship when fast-encroaching seawater explodes into the room. He is doing his duty, going down with the ship.

In 2002 and 2003, he was Théoden in “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.” His weary king was a prominent part of the story, but as with his “Titanic” captain, was ill-fated.

Having acted in “Titanic” and “Return of the King” made him the first person to appear in more than one movie that grossed $1 billion-plus at the box office. Those films also made him the only actor to have appeared in at least two of the three movies to have won 11 Oscars (the most any film has ever won).

Some of Hill’s other films include director Clint Eastwood’s “True Crime” (1999), “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (1999), “The Criminal” (1999), “The Scorpion King” (2002), “Gothika” (2003), “Wimbledon” (2004), “Valkyrie” (2008), “Golden Years” (2016), “Forever Young” (2023), and “The Moor” (2023).

He died the day Season 2 of his U.K. series “The Responder” debuted on the BBC.

Hill was at one time married to American actor Marianna Hill, with whom he had one son.

He is survived by his fiancée.