Horror movie star Joseph Pilato has sadly passed away at the age of 70. The actor had apparently died in his sleep, and the apparent cause remains unknown at this time. Pilato’s personal friend Marty Schiff verified the actor’s death on Facebook with a post remembering the actor. “It is with great sadness that I inform you that actor and old friend Joseph “Joe” Pilato passed away quietly in his sleep last night. Rest in Peace, Joe,” Schiff says in the Facebook post.

Pilato is best known to horror fans for playing Captain Rhodes in George A. Romero‘s Day of the Dead. He had previously appeared as a policeman in Romero’s Dawn of the Dead, which was his debut role as an actor. Pilato’s Captain Rhodes would become one of the most hated bad guys in horror movie history, thanks in large part to the way Pilato expertly portrayed him. By the time a horde of zombies gets their hands on the character near the end of the movie, nobody was feeling too sorry for Rhodes getting what was coming to him.

Pilato had appeared in many other movies in the following years. This included a part in Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 flick Pulp Fiction, and a voice role in the Digimon movie and TV series. He had continued to act in horror films sporadically as well, with 2015’s Night of the Living Dead: Origins 3D serving as his final movie role.

Behind the camera, Pilato seemed to be a great guy who loved his fans, far removed from his iconic villainous character from Day of the Dead. He had made appearances at horror conventions to provide signatures and pose for fan photos. 70 is just too young, and we are shocked and saddened about the news of Pilato’s unexpected passing.


Related Article: Day of the Dead: Remembering George A. Romero’s Darkest Day

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