French actor Tchéky Karyo died at the age of 72known mainly from the movie Brutal Nikita and the successful British series The Missing. This was reported by the AFP agency, according to which the actor succumbed to cancer on Friday. The news was also confirmed by his wife, actress Valérie Keruzoré, together with their children, reports .
Karyo was born in 1953 in Istanbul to a Turkish truck driver of Spanish-Jewish origin and a Greek mother, but he spent his childhood in Paris. After his beginnings in the theater, he already impressed with his first major film role in the crime film La Balance (1982), for which he received a César nomination. International success came in 1990 when he played the agent’s mentor Bob in Besson’s cult action thriller Nikita.
During almost four decades, he played dozens of significant secondary and leading roles. He appeared in films such as 1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992), Nostradamus (1994), GoldenEye (1995), Joan of Arc (1999) or The World According to Amélie (2001), in which he had one of the smallest roles – just as a face in a photo in an album. He also starred in the award-winning war drama Too Long Engagement (2004).
Karyo left behind a rich film and television career and belongs to the prominent faces of the French-European cinematography of the last decades.
