Kotto died on March 14 at 10:30 p.m. local time in the Philippines, where he lived with his wife, Goldhar said. No information was provided on the cause of death.
Kotto’s on-screen work began in the late 1960s and remained constant until the 1990s. During that time, he amassed a number of memorable roles that spoke to his transformative talent.
His notable film work includes roles in “Alien”, “The Running Man”, “Midnight Run” and “Live and Let Die”, in which he played Bond’s iconic character, Mr. Big.
On television, his longest-running role was as Lieutenant Al Giardello on NBC’s “Homicides: Street Life.”
“Yaphet Kotto. My mother’s favorite,” director Ava DuVernay wrote Twitter. “He’s one of those actors who deserved more than the parts he got. But he took those parts and made them wonderful as well. A star. Rest well, sir.”
Television producer David Simon added: “Memories and respect for Yaphet Kotto, whose film career was legendary just before he came to Baltimore to thank us for the television drama. But for me, he will always be Al Giardello, the least likely Sicilian, who will shoot lightly the office blinds to shine. to the detectives in his team room. ”