'You're Next' actor Nicholas Tucci dies at 38 after keeping his battle with cancer private
Actor Nicholas Tucci has died following a private battle with cancer at the age of 38. His father, Alexander Tucci, shared in a Facebook post from his son's account that Nicholas wished to keep his struggles with cancer private and thanked film, television and theater communities for their role in Nicholas' life.
"This is Alexander Tucci, Nick's father. On Tuesday, March 3, Nick died at the Smilow Cancer Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut. Nick chose to keep his illness private so that he could continue to pursue his professional and artistic dreams for as long as possible," Alexander wrote, on his son's Facebook page.
"In the last year, he was able to audition, go on location, and continue the work he loved so much," he shared.
Alexander then thanked the communities that his son had been the most involved in. "To those of you in the film, television, and theater communities... thank you for guiding, encouraging, and supporting Nick."
He also thanked Nicholas' fans. "To those of you who enjoyed Nick's work on the screen and stage... thank you for encouraging his talent and appreciating his efforts."
A number of people who have worked with Nicholas took to social media to publicly express their condolences, sharing memories of having worked with the actor.
Producer Keith Calder wrote, "RIP Nick Tucci. I was lucky enough to work with Nick on three movies (UNDOCUMENTED, YOU’RE NEXT, and FAULTS) and he was one of my favorite actors to work with. I'm honored to have been able to call him a friend and a colleague."
'You're Next' screenwriter Simon Barrett posted, "Nick was a wonderful, truly great actor and human being and I'm deeply sad that I didn't get to spend more time with him."
Film director and writer Chris Peckover shared a thread telling the story of his experience working with Nicholas, talking of a particularly surprising moment where he subverted expectations in a small role on 'Undocumented'.
Peckover had been expecting Nicholas to be "growling his lines, using his size to be intimidating," but that, "instead, in the first take — he threw out the script and played the scene like an excited, friendly neighbor showing off his model train collection. He had the other actors on their toes, making them react in the moment, none of them knowing what he was going to do next."
Peckover said that there was little wonder that Nicholas Tucci went on you get a starring roll in 'You're Next'.
