Terence Stamp, 'Superman' and 'Priscilla, Queen of the Desert' Actor, Dies at 87: 'He Leaves Behind an Extraordinary Body of Work'

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Stamp received an Oscar nomination for his film debut in 'Billy Budd'
Terence Stamp has died. He was 87.
The actor's family told Reuters he died on Sunday, Aug. 17.
"He leaves behind an extraordinary body of work, both as an actor and as a writer that will continue to touch and inspire people for years to come," they said in a statement to the outlet. "We ask for privacy at this sad time."
A representative for Stamp did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on Aug. 17.
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Stamp received an Oscar nomination for 1962's Billy Budd. Known primarily for his roles as villains, he played General Zod in 1978's Superman and 1980's Superman II, and appeared in Wall Street, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and The Haunted Mansion, to name a few.
Stamp was born in London in 1938. His father was in the Merchant Navy and spent much of Stamp's childhood away from the family. As a child, Stamp experienced the World War II bombing of London.
'The first film I ever saw was called Beau Geste, with Gary Cooper,' he told BFI in 2013. 'My mother took me to see that. I was probably under four years old. It was Cooper playing a soldier in the Foreign Legion. I didn't realize the impact, but it made an indelible impression on me.'
He kept his acting aspirations private. 'It wasn't until we got our first TV — I would've been about 17 I think, and I was already at work — that I started saying things like, 'Oh, I could do that,'' he told BFI. 'My dad just turned me off it. He was probably trying to save me a lot of aggro. He genuinely believed that people like us didn't do things like that.'
Stamp's dreams endured. He won a scholarship to study at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art and was soon performing in repertory theater. He became friends with fellow young actors Michael Caine and Peter O'Toole.
His film debut was in 1962's Billy Budd, in which he played the title role. He received an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor and won the Golden Globe for most promising male newcomer.
He told NPR in 2002 that Caine, who was his roommate, helped him learn some of the basics of film acting before he got to set, and once the cameras rolled he felt at home. 'When I started the movie, a kind of amazing thing happened because I just discovered that — it was like I knew it,' he said. 'It was as though it was absolutely second nature to me. Everything I saw that was new, I understood almost instantaneously.'
Stamp became associated with the Swinging London scene of the '60s. Roles for him during that time included 1966's Modesty Blaise and 1967's Far from the Madding Crowd with Julie Christie (whom he also dated).
But as the decade ended, his work dried up. 'It's a mystery to me,' he told The Guardian in 2015. 'I was in my prime. When the 1960s ended, I just ended with it. I remember my agent telling me: 'They are all looking for a young Terence Stamp.' And I thought: 'I am young.' I was 31, 32. I couldn't believe it.' He left London and spent most of the decade traveling until, while in India, he got a telegram offering him a role opposite Christopher Reeve in 1978's Superman.
'During that time away from the screen, I had transmuted myself,' he told the outlet. 'I no longer saw myself as a leading man. What had happened inside of me enabled me to take the role and not feel embarrassed or depressed about playing the villain. I just decided I was a character actor now and I can do anything.' He also returned for 1980's Superman II.
Stamp starred in 1984's The Hit, which was his first starring role in over a decade. In 1991, he won the Silver Bear for best actor at the Berlin International Film Festival for his work in Beltenebros.
In 1994, he once again got to break out of the villain box in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. In it, he played a trans woman named Bernadette who travels on a road trip with drag queens played by Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce. Stamp received widespread acclaim for his performance and was nominated for best actor at both the Golden Globes and BAFTAs.
''Cross-dressing has been around at least since Shakespeare,'' Stamp told PEOPLE in 1994. ''It would be nice if greater androgyny were the next big social development. It would make relationships easier.'' He told PEOPLE he was particularly excited for audiences to see him in a major role. ''I'm sure Hollywood will say, 'We knew he was a great villain; now we know he's got great legs.' I live in hope,' he joked.
Stamp told BFI in 2013 that he was afraid to say yes to the project but was encouraged by a friend to do it. 'It was only when I got there, and got through the fear, that it became one of the great experiences of my whole career,' he said. 'It was probably the most fun thing I've ever done in my life.' In 2024, it was announced that the Priscilla cast would be reuniting for a sequel.
Stamp appeared in 1999's Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, but he told Empire Magazine in 2013, he felt director George Lucas was more focused on visual effects than actors, and he decided not to return for the trilogy's other installments.
His other screen credits included 2005's Elektra, 2008's Get Smart and Valkyrie, 2011's The Adjustment Bureau, the 2019 Adam Sandler film Murder Mystery and 2021's Last Night in Soho.
Stamp only made a handful of TV appearances; they included a role as Jor-El, Superman's biological father, on the series Smallville. Stamp's Jor-El only appeared as a disembodied voice.
Stamp married Elizabeth O'Rourke in 2002. She was 29; he was 64. They divorced in 2008.
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