Kent Broadhurst, the character actor remembered by horror fans for Stephen King’s Silver Bullet and the writer of the screenplay that earned Laura Linney her first Emmy, died on May 20, 2026, at Calvary Hospital in the Bronx, New York. He was 86. News of his death, announced in a paid obituary, only began to circulate widely in late July.
From St. Louis to the stage
Broadhurst was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 4, 1940, and graduated from the University of Nebraska in 1962. He built a long career in theater, in regional and off-Broadway productions, and reached Broadway in revivals of The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial in 1983 and A Doll’s House in 1997. He was also a playwright: his plays, including They’re Coming to Make It Brighter and Lemons, premiered at the Humana Festival at the Actors Theatre of Louisville.
Silver Bullet and a long screen career
On screen he worked alongside some of the biggest names of his era, with roles in Sidney Lumet’s The Verdict and Mike Nichols’s Silkwood. In Silver Bullet (1985), written by Stephen King, he played the anguished father of the murdered best friend of Corey Haim’s character. His television work included Law & Order, Babylon 5 and the miniseries War and Remembrance. He wrote the screenplay for the 2001 television film Wild Iris, which brought Laura Linney her first Emmy Award.
A painter’s eye
Away from acting, Broadhurst was a prolific painter who produced more than 2,000 canvases. Music fans may also know his voice: he provided the on-stage narration as the hypnotherapist in Dream Theater’s New York performances of Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory, captured on the band’s concert film.