Bud Cort, whose singular presence and unconventional roles left an indelible mark on American cinema, died Wednesday, February 11, 2026, in Connecticut after a lengthy illness. He was 77. The news was confirmed by longtime friend and producer Dorian Hannaway, who described Cort as "a savant at acting, at theater, and he was blessed with a passion for this as a young man, as he loved art," according to The Hollywood Reporter. Though his career spanned decades and included a variety of film, television, and voice roles, Cort is best remembered for his hauntingly earnest portrayal of Harold in Hal Ashby’s 1971 cult classic Harold and Maude.
Born Walter Edward Cox on March 29, 1948, in Rye, New York, Cort grew up with an early love for the arts. He attended NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts for a brief stint and studied acting with the legendary Stella Adler before fully committing to a career in performance. As a teenager, he was known to cut school to catch Broadway matinees—sometimes lingering at stage doors with Barbra Streisand’s sister, Roslyn Kind, who remembered Cort as a close friend with a "unique spirit."
Cort’s path to stardom was as unconventional as the roles he would later embrace. Discovered by director Robert Altman while performing stand-up comedy in New York clubs, Cort was quickly cast in small but memorable roles in Altman’s 1970 films MAS*H and Brewster McCloud. Altman’s eye for talent proved prescient: Cort’s quirky, owlish looks and deadpan delivery made him a natural for offbeat, outsider characters.
It was, however, his turn as Harold Parker Chasen in Harold and Maude that cemented his legacy. The film, which paired Cort’s death-obsessed, privileged young man with Ruth Gordon’s life-affirming, 79-year-old Holocaust survivor, was initially a commercial disappointment. According to Deadline, the movie’s dark humor—centered on suicide and an unconventional romance—kept mainstream success at bay for years. Yet, as Cort himself told Trainwreck’d Society in 2012, "As I was reading the script, I immediately knew it was going to be a classic film for the ages. There was no denying it. The studio was stumped on how to publicize it. ... Truthfully, its success came from the people. The groundswell of word-of-mouth dropkicked it over so many goalposts both here and abroad that Paramount had to rerelease it."
The film’s reputation grew through midnight screenings and word-of-mouth, eventually earning a place at No. 69 on the American Film Institute’s 100 Best Romantic Comedies. Its soundtrack, featuring Cat Stevens, and its message about living life to the fullest—embodied in the film’s iconic final scene—resonated with generations of moviegoers. As Variety noted, the chemistry between Cort and Gordon was so striking during auditions that it convinced Ashby and writer Colin Higgins to cast them both. The performance earned Cort a BAFTA nomination for Most Promising Newcomer and a Golden Globe nod for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy.
Yet, the film’s success was a double-edged sword. "I was typecast to the point where I didn’t make a film for five years after ‘Harold and Maude’," Cort told the Los Angeles Times in 1996. "I only worked in theater where I was not typecast." He admitted, "It was a blessing and a curse. It closed a lot of doors in terms of my development as an actor, but on the other hand, it gave me the cachet to walk in a lot more doors than I would have been able to had I not made it." Cort even turned down a role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, saying, "I didn’t want to play crazy. I fought certain opportunities off because I wasn’t ready to be a brand name. In retrospect, I should have done everything."
Life threw further challenges his way. In 1979, Cort was involved in a devastating car accident on the Hollywood Freeway, suffering broken bones, a concussion, a fractured skull, and severe facial injuries. The accident required years of surgeries and derailed his career for a significant period. Still, Cort’s resilience and love for the craft saw him return to acting in a variety of roles, both on screen and as a voice actor. He lent his distinctive voice to the villain Toyman in Superman: The Animated Series, Static Shock, and Justice League Unlimited, and appeared in films such as Electric Dreams, Heat, Dogma, Pollock, and The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou.
Cort’s television appearances included stints on Ugly Betty, Criminal Minds, and Arrested Development. He also co-founded the LA Classic Theatre Works with Richard Dreyfuss and Rene Auberjonois, continuing his lifelong commitment to the stage. In 1991, he directed, co-wrote, and starred in the indie film Ted & Venus, further demonstrating his versatility and passion for storytelling.
Despite the ups and downs of fame, Cort maintained a sense of perspective about his career. "I don’t know if I believe in past lives or not," he mused to the Los Angeles Times. "I don’t think I do. But whatever my past was, I was an actor." In 1991, he was honored at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, where Harold and Maude received such an enthusiastic response that it was screened multiple times. Cort told the festival jury, "I never dreamed that my performance would be so fondly remembered around the world."
Bud Cort is survived by his brother Joseph Cox; sister-in-law Vickie and their daughters Meave, Brytnn, and Jesse; sisters Kerry Cox, Tracy Cox Berkman and her husband Edward Berkman and their sons Daniel and Peter; and sister Shelly Cox Dufour, her husband Robert Dufour, and their daughters Madeline and Lucie. A memorial will be held at a future date in Los Angeles.
For those who loved his work, and for those who discovered Harold and Maude in the glow of midnight screenings, Bud Cort’s legacy is one of enduring humanity, vulnerability, and the courage to be different—qualities that, decades later, still sing out.