Chris Gauthier, a Canadian actor known for “Once Upon a Time,” “Smallville” and “Eureka,” died on Feb. 23 from an unspecified short illness, according to his management. He was 48.
In a statement posted to Facebook, TriStar Appearances’ Chad Colvin confirmed the news: “When his wife reached out to me yesterday with the news, I wept tears of disbelief for hours. It’s taken me til now to fully mentally and emotionally steel myself to write this.”
“Chris was the literal textbook definition of a character actor. You may not have known his name but you knew his face, you knew his voice, and you knew that if he was onscreen, you were in for a helluva ride. Whether he was standing toe-to-toe against Clark Kent on ‘Smallville’ as the Toyman (pictured), tormenting Dean on ‘Supernatural,’ on deck with Hook as Smee in ‘Once Upon A Time’ or in guest roles in the countless other productions he was in, he ALWAYS gave it his all when the camera was rolling,” the statement continued.
In addition to the roles Colvin highlighted, Gauthier’s other TV credits include “Harper’s Island,” “Sanctuary,” “A Series of Unfortunate Events,” “Legends of Tomorrow,” “Charmed” and “Joe Pickett.” On the film side, Gauthier had roles in “40 Days and 40 Nights,” “Agent Cody Banks” and “Freddy vs. Jason.”
Gauthier’s friend Corrine Wright wrote in a Facebook post that the actor had worked with stars such as Anthony Hopkins and Robin Williams, as well as “a host of other actors who all speak very highly of how great a person he was.”
Colin O’Donoghue, who played Hook in “Once Upon a Time” opposite Gauthier, paid tribute to the actor on Instagram: “Rest in Peace Chris! Heartbroken! My love and thoughts go out to Erin and the boys! You will be missed brother! You were the real captain!!”
Gauthier is survived by his wife and children.