Robert Duvall, Actor Remembered for 'The Godfather' & 'Apocalypse Now,' Dies at 95

Robert Duvall, the acclaimed star of numerous classic 20th-century films — including "The Godfather" — has died. He was 95.

Duvall's wife Luciana announced his death on Facebook early Monday, writing, "Yesterday we said goodbye to my beloved husband, cherished friend, and one of the greatest actors of our time. Bob passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by love and comfort."

She went on, "To the world, he was an Academy Award-winning actor, a director, a storyteller. To me, he was simply everything. His passion for his craft was matched only by his deep love for characters, a great meal, and holding court. For each of his many roles, Bob gave everything to his characters and to the truth of the human spirit they represented. In doing so, he leaves something lasting and unforgettable to us all."

"Thank you for the years of support you showed Bob and for giving us this time and privacy to celebrate the memories he leaves behind," she concluded.

In his own final message to the world, Duvall said in a video posted last November, "To all my fans, have a happy, happy Thanksgiving and a great year coming up. God bless."

It was a good representation of the kind man Hollywood had come to know and love — one who was considered one of the greatest actors of all time.

Duvall was born on January 5, 1931, in San Diego.

He landed his first TV work in 1959 on an episode of "Armstrong Circle Theater," and also appeared on other early dramas, including "The Robert Herridge Theater" (1960) and "Playhouse 90" (1960).

After several more TV appearances, including on "Route 66" (1961), "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" (1962), and "Naked City" (1961-1962), he made an auspicious film debut in "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962) as Boo Radley. The film, based on Harper Lee's phenomenally popular novel about a racially charged rape trial, was an equally unqualified success, earning eight Oscar nominations.

Duvall was remembered Monday by his "To Kill a Mockingbird" co-star Mary Badham, who played Scout in the film. She told The Hollywood Reporter, "He was a very good actor, and I admired his work.”

He continued working on TV, including returning to "Route 66" (1963) and appearing on "The Untouchables" (1963) and "The Twilight Zone" (1963).

Duvall made his acclaimed Broadway debut in the suspenseful "Wait Until Dark" (1966) as one of a trio of thugs terrorizing a blind woman in her apartment as they seek heroin stashed in a doll.

That same year, he appeared in Arthur Penn's "The Chase" with Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda and Robert Redford.

For most of the rest of the decade, Duvall's work on TV built his reputation, leading to what would become a dizzying succession of performances in impactful films. He was a cabbie in the classic chase flick "Bullitt" (1968); acted with John Wayne as the Duke gave his only Oscar-winning performance in "True Grit" (1969); and was annoying Major Burns in Robert Altman's subversive "M*A*S*H" (1970).

In 1971, Duvall did a daring nude scene in George Lucas's cult classic "THX 1138," a sci-fi film about a rigidly controlled future. The film has gone on to become deeply influential, an early dystopian vision whose critical acclaim has increased over time after it initially flopped.

Duvall followed it up with his masterful performance as Tom Hagen in Francis Ford Coppola's "The Godfather" (1972), for which he earned his first of seven Oscar nominations, returning for its sequel "The Godfather II" in 1974. Both films are consistently ranked among the finest ever made.

Between those classics, Duvall worked in another seven movies, among them Coppola's "The Conversation" (1974), in which he was uncredited.

Duvall's '70s work also included "The Seven-Per-Cent Solution" (1976) as Watson to Alan Arkin's Sherlock Holmes, and in the cynical, media-tweaking "Network" (1976), another Oscar magnet.

After playing Eisenhower on TV in the miniseries "Ike: The War Years" (1979), he gave what is considered one of his greatest performances, as crazed Lt. Colonel Kilgore in Coppola's Vietnam epic "Apocalypse Now" (1979) with Brando and Martin Sheen.

He followed it closely with "The Great Santini" (1979), in which he played "warrior without a war" Bull Meechum, a military pilot who attempts to run his family like a drill sergeant. He received back-to-back Oscar nominations for that film and "Apocalypse Now."

In 1983, for his quiet portrayal of a fading country music star in Bruce Beresford's "Tender Mercies," Duvall received his first and only Oscar.

Other '80s work included "The Natural" (1984) and "Colors" (1988), as well as one of his most beloved projects, the TV miniseries "Lonesome Dove" (1989), in which he played Gus McCrae. It resulted in his first of four Emmy nominations.

Duvall worked tirelessly, equally at home in the Tom Cruise car flick "Days of Thunder" (1990), the coming-of-age film "Rambling Rose" (1991) with Laura Dern, and the Disney musical "Newsies" (1992).

He was Emmy-nominated as Stalin in the 1992 TV movie of the same name as well as for playing Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann in the 1996 TV movie "The Man Who Captured Eichmann" (1996).

Among his best-known '90s films were "Falling Down" (1993) with Michael Douglas, "Wrestling Ernest Hemingway" (1993) with Richard Harris, "Something to Talk About" (1995) with Julia Roberts, "The Scarlet Letter" (1995) with Demi Moore, "Sling Blade" (1996) with Billy Bob Thornton; "The Apostle" (1997), for which he was Oscar-nominated; "The Gingerbread Man" (1998) with Kenneth Branagh, the star-studded disaster film "Deep Impact" (1998); and "A Civil Action" (1998), for which he was Oscar-nominated.

Duvall finally won his Emmy for the miniseries "Broken Trail" (2006) and earned one final Oscar nod, for 2014's "The Judge."

His remarkably long career wound down with memorable work in "Widows" (2018). That film's star, Viola Davis, remembered Duvall on Threads, writing, "I was in awe. I’ve always been in awe of your towering portrayals of men who were both quiet and dominating in their humanness. You were a giant… an icon… ‘Apocalypse Now,’ ‘The Godfather,’ ‘To Kill a Mockingbird,’ ‘Tender Mercies,’ ‘The Apostle,’ ‘Lonesome Dove’… etc… Greatness never dies. It stays… as a gift. Rest well, sir. Your name will be spoken… May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.”

The historical mystery "The Pale Blue Eye" in 2022 served as his final project.

Duvall is survived by his wife.