Godspeed Lance Reddick

Lance Reddick, who played Cedric Daniels on  The Wire and Charon in the John Wick movies, among many other roles, died on March 17 2023 at at the age of 60.

Lance Reddick was born on June 7 1962 in Baltimore. He attended Friends School of Baltimore and as a teenager attended the Peabody Preparatory Institute, studying music. He studied music at the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester in New York and graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree. While in college he began acting with the thought that it could help his musical career. He attended the Yale School of Drama.

Lance Reddick made his television debut in an episode of New York Undercover. He made his film debut in Great Expectations in 1998. In the Nineties he guest starred on such shows as Swift Justice, The Nanny, Hallmark Hall of Fame, The West Wing, and The Corner. It was in 2000 that he began playing Detective John Basil on the HBO television series Oz. He also appeared in the recurring role of Assistant ME Taylor on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Lance Reddick appeared in the movies The Siege (1998) and I Dreamed of Africa (2000).

In the Naughts Mr. Reddick began a long run as Cedric Daniels on The Wire. The character went from being a police lieutenant to a police major to a police colonel to deputy commissioner for operations in the course of the series. He also played Matthew Abaddon on Lost and Phillip Broyles on Fringe late in the decade. He guest starred on the shows 100 Centre Street, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order, CSI: Miami, Numb3rs, and Svetlana. He appeared in the movies Don't Say a Word (2001), Bridget (2002), Brother to Brother (2004), Dirty Work (2006), Tennessee (2008), The Way of War (2009), and Jonah Hex (2010).

In the Teens Lance Reddick continued to appear as Philip Broyles on Fringe. He played DCI Jeffrey Tetazoo on the TV series Intelligence, Chief Irvin Irving on Bosch, and Christian DeVille on Corporate. He guest starred on the shows It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Comedy Bang! Bang!, Wanda Sykes Presents Herlarious, Wilfrid, The Blacklist, Key and Peele, Castle, Mary + Jane, and American Horror Story.He did a good deal of voice work, playing Sam Wilson/The Falcon on the animated series The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, Cutler on Tron: Uprising, Ra's al Ghul on Beware The Batman, Lunaris on DuckTales, and the Captain on Castlevania. He was also a guest voice on Rick and Morty. It was in 2014 that he first played Charon, the concierge of the Continental in John Wick. He reprised in the role in John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) and John Wick: Chapter 3--Parabellum (2019). He also appeared in the movies Won't Back Down (2012), White House Down (2013), Oldboy (2013), The Guest (2014), Faults (2014), Search Party (2014), Little Woods (2018), Canal Street (2018), The Domestics (2018), Monster Party (2018), Angel Has Fallen (2019), Business Ethics (2019), Faith Ba$ed (2020), and Sylvie's Love (2020).

In the Twenties Lance Reddick continued to appear as Chief Irving on the TV show Bosch. He was a regular on the TV series Resident Evil. He was a regular on the animated series Farzar, Vindicators 2, Paradise PD, and The Legend of Vox Machina. He guest starred on the show Young Sheldon. He will appear as Charon for one last time in John Wick: Chapter 4, set to be released this Friday, March 24 2023.

Lance Reddick also provided voices for a wide variety of video games.

Lance Reddick was gifted with a sonorous voice and his screen presence was palpable. He was also extremely versatile, playing a wide variety of  roles. He played Cedric Daniels on The Wire, the ambitious, but honest police officer with an eye on a career in politics. He was also Johnny Basil, a police officer who went undercover at Oswald State Correctional Facility. In contrast to Cedric Daniels, Johnny Basil eventually succumbed to the dark side. In contrast to both of these roles is Charon, the efficient, faithful, and brave concierge of the Continental in the John Wick movies. On Fringe Lance Reddick not only played Phillip Broyles, but also Phillip Broyles's doppelganger in a parallel universe. During his career he played everything from police officers to military officials to medical doctors. Lance Reddick was an extremely talented actor capable of playing a wide variety of roles. He always gave good performances.