Michael Madsen’s Sister Virginia Breaks Silence on His Sudden Death

Michael Madsen’s Sister Virginia Madsen Breaks Silence on His Sudden Death

Michael Madsen’s family is mourning his sudden death.

Hours after the Reservoir Dogs actor was found dead in his Malibu home July 3 at 67 years old, Virginia Madsen penned an emotional tribute to her older brother.  

“My brother Michael has left the stage,” Virginia wrote in a July 3 statement to Variety. “He was thunder and velvet. Mischief wrapped in tenderness. A poet disguised as an outlaw. A father, a son, a brother—etched in contradiction, tempered by love that left its mark.”

The Candyman actress went on to emphasize that Michael—who was survived by seven children—was more than just a face on the screen.

“We’re not mourning a public figure,” she continued. “We’re not mourning a myth—but flesh and blood and ferocious heart. Who stormed through life loud, brilliant, and half on fire. Who leaves us echoes—gruff, brilliant, unrepeatable—half legend, half lullaby.”

And even though the Kill Bill: Vol. 2 actor became a Hollywood legend, Virginia, 63, would always remember him as the playful older brother she got to spend her childhood with.

“I’ll miss our inside jokes, the sudden laughter, the sound of him,” she concluded. “I’ll miss the boy he was before the legend; I miss my big brother. Thank you to everyone reaching out with love and memory. In time, we’ll share how we plan to celebrate his life—but for now, we stay close, and let the silence say what words can’t.”

Virginia’s heartfelt tribute came just hours after the Quentin Tarantino collaborator’s manager Ron Smith confirmed his death to NBC News.

“In the last two years Michael Madsen has been doing some incredible work with independent film including upcoming feature films Resurrection Road, Concessions and Cookbook for Southern Housewives, and was really looking forward to this next chapter in his life,” Madsen’s managers Susan Ferris and Smith, and publicist Liz Rodriguez said in a statement to NBC 4 Los Angeles. “Michael was also preparing to release a new book called Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems, currently being edited.”

Photo by Albert L. Ortega/WireImage

According to the outlet, authorities found the actor’s body in his Malibu home after responding to a 911 call that morning and pronounced him dead at the scene. Smith has since conformed that Madsen died from cardiac arrest.

“Michael Madsen was one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors,” the statement continued, “who will be missed by many.”

(E!, NBC News and News 4 Los Angeles are all part of the NBCUniversal family.)

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