<\/p>\n
Terence Stamp, who famously played the archvillain General Zod in the first two Superman films, died Sunday at the age of 87.<\/p>\n
His death was confirmed by a representative after his family released a statement.<\/p>\n
Mr. Stamp was an acclaimed English leading man turned character actor whose intense, sky-blue gaze sizzled on the silver screen for decades.<\/p>\n
His performance in the 1962 film \u201cBilly Budd\u201d earned him an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe for most promising male newcomer. Just 24 when the film was released, Mr. Stamp managed to stand out in a year that saw an uncanny number of cinema classics released<\/a>, including \u201cLawrence of Arabia,\u201d \u201cThe Manchurian Candidate\u201d and \u201cCape Fear.\u201d<\/p>\n The son of a tugboat stoker, Mr. Stamp emerged as one of the defining stars of British cinema throughout the 1960s, known as much for his offscreen romances with actress Julie Christie and English supermodel Jean Shrimpton as he was for his brilliant leading roles.<\/p>\n But for international audiences, the ultimate Mr. Stamp villain was the ultra-ambitious alien General Zod in \u201cSuperman\u201d (1978). Mr. Stamp said he accepted the part because he wanted to work opposite Marlon Brando. Before then, he had stepped away from acting to become a swami, or religious leader, in India.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the 1960s ended, I just ended with it,\u201d Mr. Stamp told the Guardian<\/a> in 2015 about his pre-\u201cSuperman\u201d acting drought. \u201cI remember my agent telling me: \u2018They are all looking for a young Terence Stamp.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The first Superman film was something of a rebirth for the actor, who had become used to being a leading man. \u201cI just decided I was a character actor now and I can do anything,\u201d he said. Mr. Stamp would reprise his turn as General Zod in 1980, for \u201cSuperman II.\u201d<\/p>\n For the next 40 years, Mr. Stamp and his \u201cunsettlingly intense stare<\/a>\u201d appeared on film. In 1994\u2019s \u201cThe Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert,\u201d he played a middle-aged transgender woman named Bernadette. The movie drew mixed reviews at the time, but Mr. Stamp was widely considered the film\u2019s \u201cchief asset<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Stamp also starred in Steven Soderbergh\u2019s \u201cThe Limey\u201d alongside Peter Fonda. \u201cTerence Stamp builds up such a head of angry steam, \u2026 it\u2019s a wonder the theater ceiling doesn\u2019t blister,\u201d a Washington Post review declared<\/a> in 1999.<\/p>\n