A Canadian actor whose career spanned seven decades has passed away.
Donald Sutherland, who had Maritime roots and became one of Hollywood's best-known character actors, died Thursday morning in Miami. He was 88.
"With a heavy heart, I tell you that my father, Donald Sutherland, has passed away," wrote Sutherland's son, actor Kiefer Sutherland, on Instagram. "I personally think one of the most important actors in the history of film. Never daunted by a role, good, bad, or ugly. He loved what he did and did what he loved, and one can never ask for more than that. A life well lived."
CNN reported that he had been ill for some time.
Born in New Brunswick in 1935, Sutherland and his family moved to Nova Scotia when he was 12. He got his first job at 14 as a news reporter for a Bridgewater radio station.
He attended Victoria University in Toronto and later moved to Britain, where he attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and found bit parts in British films. He found his breakout role in the classic 1967 western "The Dirty Dozen", and left the U.K. for the U.S.
Among the many films featuring Sutherland were "Klute", "Eye of the Needle", "National Lampoon's Animal House", "Ordinary People", "Backdraft", "JFK", and "Space Cowboys".
His role as President Snow, the antagonist in the "Hunger Games" film series, introduced Sutherland to a new generation of filmgoers.
Sutherland won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his work in the 1995 HBO film "Citizen X", and a second Golden Globe for 2002's "Path to War", an HBO film about the Vietnam War.
He was married three times, the third for 52 years to Quebec actress Francine Racette.