AUDASE

PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN

　

Bruce Webber and J. David Goodman

New York Times

Philip Seymour Hoffman, perhaps the most ambitious and widely admired American actor of his generation, who gave three-dimensional nuance to a wide range of sidekicks, villains and leading men on screen and embraced some of the theater’s most burdensome roles on Broadway, died Sunday at an apartment in Greenwich Village. He was 46.

The death, apparently from a drug overdose, was confirmed by the police. Mr. Hoffman was found in the apartment by a friend, David Bar Katz, who became concerned after being unable to reach him.

Investigators found a syringe in his left forearm, at least two plastic envelopes with what appeared to be heroin near where his body was found in a bathroom, and five empty plastic envelopes in a trash bin, a law-enforcement official said.

Mr. Hoffman was long known to struggle with addiction. In 2006, he said in an interview with "60 Minutes" that he had given up drugs and alcohol many years earlier, when he was 22. But last year, he checked into a rehabilitation program for about 10 days after a reliance on prescription pills resulted in his briefly turning again to heroin.

"I saw him last week, and he was clean and sober, his old self," said Mr. Katz, a playwright, who said he called 911 after finding Mr. Hoffman. "I really thought this chapter was over."

On Sunday afternoon, Mr. Hoffman’s family released a statement saying: "We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Phil and appreciate the outpouring of love and support we have received from everyone. This is a tragic and sudden loss and we ask that you respect our privacy during this time of grieving. Please keep Phil in your thoughts and prayers."

As news of Mr. Hoffman’s death spread, fellow actors took to Teitter express their admiration for his acting and grief over his death. Ellen DeGeneres, who will host the Oscars ceremony in March over which Mr. Hoffman’s death is likely to cast a pall, posted: "Philip Seymour Hoffman was a brilliant, talented man. The news this morning is shocking and sad. My heart goes out to his loved ones."

Mr. Hoffman won an Academy Award in 2006 for best actor for his role in the film "Capote," in which he portrayed the author Truman Capote as Mr. Capote researched the book "In Cold Blood."

Known for his scene-stealing supporting roles, Mr. Hoffman was nominated for the Academy Award for best supporting actor three times: for the 2012 film "The Master," the 2008 film "Doubt," and the 2007 film "Charlie Wilson’s War." He also recently had a role in the hugely popular "The Hunger Games" films.

Mr. Hoffman had been acting in films for the last two decades, often transforming physically for each new role. He was prolific as well, sometimes filming several movies in a year and appearing in plays on Broadway.

In 2012, he played Willy Loman in Arthur Miller’s "Death of a Salesman" on Broadway, a performance that earned him his third Tony Award nomination. He was also nominated for "True West" in 2000 and "Long Day’s Journey Into Night" in 2003.

"I try to live my life in such a way that I don’t have profound regrets," Mr. Hoffman told The New York Times in 2008. "That’s probably why I work so much. I don’t want to feel I missed something important."

Mr. Hoffman had three young children, a son and two daughters, with his partner, Mimi O’Donnell, a costume designer and the artistic director of the Labyrinth Theater Company in New York. The family lived in an apartment on Jane Street, neighbors said, not far from the building on Bethune Street, where his body was found.

In his acceptance thanked at the Academy Awards in 2006, Mr. Hoffman thanked many people, but in particular his mother, Marilyn O’Connor, who attended. He thanked her for raising him and his three siblings on her own and for taking him to see his first play.

"Be proud, Mom, ‘cause I’m proud of you, and we’re here tonight, and it’s so good," he said with a smile.

On Sunday afternoon outside the Bethune Street building, more than 100 people had gathered to mourn the actor’s death.