Actor James Ransone, Known for 'The Wire' and 'It,' Dies at 46
The Wire and It: Chapter Two performer James Ransone has passed away. He was 46 years old.
Ransone died on Friday, December 19, as a result of suicide, as confirmed by records from the County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner obtained by Us Weekly.
Ransone is survived by his spouse, Jamie McPhee, and their two children.
While Ransone maintained a private personal life, he had previously spoken openly about his experiences as an actor.
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“I didn’t connect well with my peers during childhood. My teenage years were truly difficult – as I believe they are for many young people,” Ransone remembered in a 2016 conversation with Interview magazine. “It was a very awkward time. Traditional public schools were a struggle for me. Then my mother discovered this school. She suggested, ‘They’re starting an arts school. You can try out.’”
He continued, “I believe it truly saved me as a young person. Attending arts school was a lifeline.”
Following his high school graduation, Ransone continued his education at The School of the Visual Arts in New York before securing a series of roles in television and film.
“I still contemplate the therapeutic aspects of acting. I don’t often portray sympathetic characters, so I frequently find myself inhabiting the roles of unlikeable individuals,” he confessed to Interview. “Consequently, I don’t always feel positive. I derive more emotional release from photography, painting, or creating short films. You have a degree of control.”
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Ransone elaborated, “I think all art – if it’s successful – stems from a genuine attempt to express something that defies verbal explanation. The point where words fail is where compelling art begins.”
Ransone particularly valued his time filming Generation Kill as “a highlight of [his] life.”
“Living in Africa, being surrounded by the soldiers who inspired the story – especially since my father is a Vietnam veteran,” he explained to the outlet. “Being near these marines who had experienced war, and were still young, allowed me to see a different side of my father as a young man. Many things became clearer to me in a new way. I developed close relationships with Evan Wright, the author of the source book, and with some of the marines. It didn’t necessarily advance my career, but it profoundly impacted me and my worldview.”
According to Ransone, the experience broadened his perspective and understanding of “an entirely different part of the world.”
“Witnessing a different level of hardship and a different level of happiness and joy that wasn’t typical of American life,” he said. “That prompted me to reconsider politics and world history. Listening to men who had fought in war share their experiences in a way that would likely make many people uncomfortable.”
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Three years later, Ransone described himself as an “under-the-radar character actor” while considering his place in the film industry.
“I’m simply a determined, rebellious artist who unexpectedly found myself involved in this large, widespread cultural event,” he told Jack Central in 2019 regarding his involvement with the It franchise. “That’s how I would summarize 20 years of work, if I had to.”
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