Tim Curry, the actor who made Dr Frank-N-Furter a defining figure of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, has died at 80, leaving behind a film, theatre and music catalogue that extended far beyond his most famous role.
by Paul Cashmere
Tim Curry, the English actor and singer whose career encompassed The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Times Square, Annie, Legend, Clue and It, has died at the age of 80. Curry died at his home in Toluca Lake, Los Angeles, on 25 August 2026. A cause of death has not been disclosed.
For many audiences, Curry will forever be associated with Dr Frank-N-Furter, the character he originated in the London stage production of The Rocky Horror Show in 1973 before reprising the role for the 1975 film The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The film transformed Curry into an international cult figure and became one of cinema’s most enduring midnight movie phenomena.
Curry’s career, however, was considerably broader. He was a stage actor, film performer, television actor, voice artist and recording artist, with three studio albums released by A&M Records between 1978 and 1981. Those records provide an important musical chapter in the career of an artist whose voice was as recognisable as his screen performances.
Curry’s recording career began with Read My Lips in 1978. Produced by Bob Ezrin with Michael Kamen as associate producer, the album was largely built around interpretations of other writers’ material. Its selections ranged from The Beatles’ “I Will” to Joni Mitchell’s “All I Want”, Irving Berlin’s “Harlem on My Mind” and “Anyone Who Had a Heart”. Curry also recorded “Sloe Gin”, a song written for him by Ezrin and Kamen.
The following year Curry moved further into rock with Fearless, released by A&M on 28 June 1979. The album was predominantly original material, much of it written by Curry with Michael Kamen and Dick Wagner. “I Do the Rock” became Curry’s most successful US single and his only song to reach the Billboard Hot 100. Fearless reached No. 53 on the Billboard 200, making it his most commercially successful studio album.
Fearless also left a longer musical legacy. “No Love on the Street”, co-written by Curry and Kamen, was later recorded by Joe Bonamassa, while “Sloe Gin” was revisited by Bonamassa in 2007 after first appearing on Curry’s debut album.
Curry’s third and final studio album was Simplicity, released in 1981. The record returned to a mixture of original songs and covers, including The Zombies’ “She’s Not There”, Squeeze’s “Take Me, I’m Yours”, Martha and the Vandellas’ “Dancing in the Streets”, “Summer in the City” and Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You”. “Working on My Tan” was issued as a single in some territories but did not become a commercial success. Simplicity reached No. 45 in Canada.
The three albums reveal a performer interested in interpretation as much as authorship, moving between rock, soul, pop, blues and theatrical material. Curry toured with his band in North America and Europe between 1978 and 1980. A&M later issued The Best of Tim Curry in 1989, collecting material from his albums alongside previously unreleased recordings.
Curry’s screen career was already developing around the time of his recording debut. Following The Rocky Horror Picture Show, he appeared in films including The Shout, before playing Johnny LaGuardia in the 1980 musical drama Times Square.
He subsequently portrayed Rooster Hannigan in Annie, Darkness in Ridley Scott’s Legend and Wadsworth in Clue.
His television work was equally distinctive. His portrayal of Pennywise in the 1990 television adaptation of Stephen King’s It became another defining performance, while his voice work included Captain Hook in Peter Pan & the Pirates, Hexxus in FernGully: The Last Rainforest, Sir Nigel Thornberry in The Wild Thornberrys and Chancellor Palpatine in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
On stage, Curry received three Tony Award nominations, including for Amadeus, My Favorite Year and Spamalot. His work across theatre, film, television and music made him unusual among performers who achieved such a strong cult following through a single role.
Curry returned to Rocky Horror in later years, including as the Criminologist in the 2016 television remake. In 2025, he took part in events marking the 50th anniversary of the film.
Curry’s death closes the career of an artist whose most famous character became larger than the film itself. Yet the three albums remain a substantial record of another side of his artistry, documenting an ambitious period in which an established stage performer was also pursuing a career as a rock singer and recording artist.
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