Kent Broadhurst, ‘Silver Bullet’ Actor and ‘Wild Iris’ Screenwriter, Dies at 86
According to CinemaDrame News Agency, Kent Broadhurst, a prominent supporting actor who appeared in acclaimed films such as The Verdict, Silkwood, and Silver Bullet, and who penned the screenplay that brought Laura Linney her first Emmy Award, has died at the age of 86.
According to an obituary notice, Broadhurst passed away on May 20 at Calvary Hospital in the Bronx. He had been a longtime resident of New York’s Greenwich Village for the past 63 years.
Born in St. Louis, the artist amassed an extensive theater portfolio throughout his long career, including Broadway appearances in the 1983 revival of The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and the 1997 revival of A Doll’s House. In addition to acting, he also authored several plays.
Broadhurst may be best remembered by audiences for his role as a grieving father whose son’s best friend is murdered in the 1985 Stephen King horror film Silver Bullet. In an interview reflecting on the project, he recalled arriving on set at 2 a.m. to film the scene where his character confronts his child’s body, only to find a dummy created by the special effects team that was completely unconvincing. Broadhurst suggested to the director that he convey the weight of the tragedy through his facial expressions instead, eliminating the need to show the dummy—a proposal the director gratefully accepted, keeping the camera focused entirely on Broadhurst’s face.
Broadhurst also wrote the screenplay for the 2001 television film Wild Iris, directed by Daniel Petrie. The film stars Laura Linney as a young widow living with her son and mother (played by Gena Rowlands). Linney won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie for her performance—marking the first Emmy win of her career. Rowlands was also nominated for an Emmy for her role in the film.
James Kent Broadhurst was born on February 4, 1940. After graduating from the University of Nebraska, he moved to New York and began his acting career in theater. He made his feature film debut in Brubaker (1980), starring Robert Redford, before going on to appear in celebrated films such as Sidney Lumet’s The Verdict (1982), starring Paul Newman, and Mike Nichols’ Silkwood (1983), starring Meryl Streep.
In the 1983 miniseries Kennedy, he portrayed Richard Paul Pavlick, a postal worker arrested for plotting to assassinate John F. Kennedy. Following Silver Bullet, he appeared in another Stephen King adaptation, George A. Romero’s The Dark Half (1993).
His extensive filmography also includes roles in The MatchMaker, Mac, Luc Besson’s Léon: The Professional, and A Couch in New York, as well as guest appearances on popular television series such as The Equalizer, Walker, Texas Ranger, Babylon 5, and Law & Order.
Beyond his work in film and theater, Broadhurst was a versatile artist and a prolific painter who created over 2,000 paintings, several of which were exhibited in art galleries. Friends and colleagues consistently remembered him as a thoughtful, generous individual with a profound passion for all forms of art.
