Members of the Hollywood community are reacting to the death of James Caan, who passed away on Wednesday evening at the age of 82.
“So sorry to hear the news,” Rob Reiner wrote. “I loved working with him. And the only Jew I knew who could calf rope with the best of them. Love to the family.”
“James Caan. Loved him very much. Always wanted to be like him,” comedian Adam Sandler shared on Twitter. “So happy I got to know him. Never ever stopped laughing when I was around that man. His movies were the best of the best. We all will miss him terribly. Thinking of his family and sending my love.”
“RIP James Caan, 82. Brilliant actor — loved him as Sonny Corleone in The Godfather, such a ferocious, menacing, magnificent performance. Met him once at a party in LA and he was a very funny & highly entertaining man. Sad news,” Piers Morgan wrote.
“Very sad to hear the news that James Caan has died. Heartbroken for his family & his friends. Wonderful to know him & call him a pal,” actor Gary Sinise wrote on Twitter. “Jimmy was so supportive of Gary Sinise Foundation & my work w/ our veterans. He will be missed. Thank you my friend. Rest In Peace. God bless you.”
“James Caan always had the funniest stories. Once he told me [Francis Ford] Coppola had the habit of grabbing food off his plate & eating it, so one day he made a sandwich with very hot jalapeños between two pieces of buttered bread, & waited outside Coppola’s airstream…” Jennifer Tilly shared.
“We were lucky enough to work with James Caan on Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs,” wrote Hollywood producer Christopher Miller. “He brought a pathos and authenticity to the role of Tim Lockwood that held the film together. RIP to a legend.”
Caan was best known for his role as Sonny Corleone in “The Godfather,” a film by Francis Ford Coppola. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the film. Caan also had roles in films including “Elf,” “Thief,” “Misery” and “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,” where he had a voice acting role.
“Jimmy was someone who stretched through my life longer and closer than any motion picture figure I’ve ever known,” Coppola said in a statement to Deadline. “From those earlier times working together on The Rain People, and throughout all the milestones of my life, his films and the many great roles he played will never be forgotten. He will always be my old friend from Sunnyside, my collaborator and one of the funniest people I’ve ever known.”
Al Pacino, one of Caan’s costars in “The Godfather,” wrote, “My fictional brother and lifelong friend. It’s hard to believe that he won’t be in the world anymore because he was so alive and daring. A great actor, a brilliant director and my dear friend. I’m going to miss him.”
Caan was a vocal conservative and supported Donald Trump for president in 2016. “I’m an ultra conservative,” he said to Fox News at Moet & Chandon’s 6th Annual Hollyshorts Film Festival Opening Night Celebration in Los Angeles. “I’m not a G–damn Hollywood liberal, I’m not.”
News of his passing was shared in a post from his Twitter, shared by his family “It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Jimmy on the evening of July 6. The family appreciates the outpouring of love and heartfelt condolences and asks that you continue to respect their privacy during this difficult time,” it read.
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