Jessica Walter died last night, Wednesday, March 24 at home in New York. The 80-year-old award-winning actresses’ career included Clint Eastwood’s directorial debut, Play Misty for Me, and The Flamingo Kid. Walter also had an Emmy-nomination from her role on Trapper John M..D. and Streets of San Francisco. One of her most known characters included being the voice of Malory Archer on FXX’s animated series Archer and Lucille Bluth in Arrested Development.
“It is with a heavy heart that I confirm the passing of my beloved mom Jessica,” shared Brooke Bowman, Walter’s surviving daughter. “A working actor for over six decades, her greatest pleasure was bringing joy to others through her storytelling both on-screen and off. While her legacy will live on through her body of work, she will also be remembered by many for her wit, class, and overall joie de vivre.”
Walter served as second National Vice President of the Screen Actors Guild and was selected on the SAG Board of Directors.
When the news spread that she died, co-stars such as David Cross honored her. Cross even called Walker “an absolutely brilliant actress and amazing talent.”
The talented actress started her career in her hometown of New York. She appeared in numerous Broadway productions including Advise and Consent, Neil Simon’s Rumors, A Severed Head, Nightlife, and Photo Finish, for which she earned the Clarence Derwent Award for Most Promising Newcomer.
She also showed up at New York’s Playwright’s Horizons and the Los Angeles Theater Center, where she starred in Tartuffe opposite the late Ron Leibman, her Emmy- and Tony-winning husband. She also starred in the Broadway revival of Anything Goes, which picked up several Tony Awards.
Remembering the amazing career of Jessica Walter today, including her iconic voice performance as Fran Sinclair on Dinosaurs. pic.twitter.com/YrSlM24f3w
— The Jim Henson Company (@hensoncompany) March 25, 2021
What a brilliant, funny, intelligent and strong woman. RIP Jessica Walter, and thank you for a lifetime of laughs and for sharing your incredible talent on our show and with the world. #jessicawalter
— Ron Howard (@RealRonHoward) March 25, 2021
