Legendary Godfather actor James Caan has died aged 82, his family announced on Thursday. The Hollywood veteran, who played Sonny Corleone in the mobster classic, passed away yesterday, their statement read.
The post noted they ‘appreciate the outpouring of love and heartfelt condolences’ from his millions of admirers and requested privacy while they mourn.
Meanwhile his manager said he was ‘one of the greatest and best actors our business has ever seen’ but said their ‘relationship was always friendship before business’.
Tributes flooded in for the star, who also featured in Misery, Elf and Mickey Blue Eyes, with many posting quotes from his role as Sonny Corleone in The Godfather and debating his greatest performances.
Caan was spotted using a walker at a restaurant with friends in California in April after spending some of last year in a wheelchair as he recovered from back surgery – but no cause of death has been given.
His passing comes just over a month after fellow gangster film star Ray Liotta died in his sleep aged 67 while shooting a new TV series in the Dominican Republic.
James Caan is pictured as Santino ‘Sonny’ Corleone in ‘The Godfather, ‘ the movie based on the novel by Mario Puzo, on March 15, 1972
James Caan Jr and James Caan attend ‘The Godfather’ 50th Anniversary Celebration at Paramount Theatre on February 22 in LA
Caan is pictured with his fourth wife Linda Stokes, who in 2016 was said to be estranged and ‘blowing through savings and ruining his reputation by forcing the legendary actor to take roles instead of retire’
Legendary Godfather actor James Caan has died aged 82, his family revealed on Thursday. The Hollywood veteran, who played Sonny Corleone in the mobster classic, passed away yesterday (pictured with Marlon Brando, Al Pacino and John Cazale)
James Caan died on July 6. He was last seen grabbing dinner with friends in West Hollywood in this picture in 2021
Caan’s family said in a post on his Twitter on Thursday: ‘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. End of tweet.’
His manager DelPiano said: ‘Jimmy was one of the greatest. Not only was he one of the best actors our business has ever seen, he was funny, loyal, caring and beloved.
‘Our relationship was always friendship before business. I will miss him dearly and am proud to have worked with him all these years.’
The Bronx native is best known for his role as Santino ‘Sonny’ Corleone in The Godfather as well as starring in blockbusters Misery, Elf and Mickey Blue Eyes.
He did not slow down later in life and continued his work in recent years, with his most recent coming in the 2019 crime drama Out of Blue.
He started to take things slower from 2015 when he was rushed to hospital suffering with chest pain. But the Hollywood vet was not having a heart attack and was just suffering from a chest infection.
Caan speaks onstage during the 50th Anniversary celebration of ‘Godfather’ at Paramount Pictures Studios on February 22
James has four children with three of his ex wives (pictured with his youngest children James and Jacob, now 24 and 21, and his fourth wife Linda Stokes in 2007)
He revealed the reason a sequel to Elf will never happen is because Will Ferrell, 53, and director Jon Favreau, 53, do not get along; from left, Amy Sedaris, Caan and Ferrell
The veteran actor appeared to be in good spirits as he left Craig’s in West Hollywood, California, and matched his outerwear with a purple and blue checked shirt in 2021
Tributes flooded in for the legendary actor, with Rob Reiner, who directed Caan’s movie Misery, writing: ‘So sorry to hear the news. I loved working with him.
‘And the only Jew I knew who could calf rope with the best of them. Love to the family.’ Maria Shriver wrote: ‘So sad about Jimmy Caan. He was a legend. He was always kind to me. Sending his family my love.’
James Gunn wrote: ‘Rest In Peace James Caan. There are so many movies of his I love, The Godfather films of course being at the very top, but here are a few more I adore (Thief in particular was a Gunn family classic – I had the poster on my wall in high school).’
A football player at Michigan State University and a practical joker on production sets, Caan was a grinning, handsome performer with an athlete´s swagger and muscular build.
He managed a staggering six-decade career despite drug problems, outbursts of temper and minor brushes with the law.
Caan had been a favorite of Francis Ford Coppola since the 1960s, when Coppola cast him for the lead in ‘Rain People.’
He was primed for a featured role in ‘The Godfather’ as Sonny, the No. 1 enforcer and eldest son of Mafia boss Vito Corleone.
Sonny Corleone, a violent and reckless man who conducted many killings, met his own end in one of the most jarring movie scenes in history.
For decades after, he once said, strangers would approach him on the street and jokingly warn him to stay clear of toll roads.
Despite Coppola’s fears he had made a flop, the 1972 release was an enormous critical and commercial success and brought supporting actor Oscar nominations for Caan, Duvall and Al Pacino.
Caan was already a star on television, breaking through in the 1971 TV movie ‘Brian´s Song,’ an emotional drama about Chicago Bears running back Brian Piccolo, who had died of cancer the year before at age 26.
After ‘Brian´s Song’ and ‘The Godfather,’ he was one of Hollywood´s busiest actors, appearing in ‘Hide in Plain Sight’ (which he also directed), ‘Funny Lady’ (opposite Barbra Streisand), ‘The Killer Elite’ and Neil Simon´s ‘Chapter Two,’ among others. He also made a brief appearance in a flashback sequence in ‘The Godfather, Part II.’
But by the early 1980s he began to sour on films. He had begun to struggle with drug use and was devastated by the 1981 leukemia death of his sister, Barbara, who until then had been a guiding force in his career.
He returned to full-fledged stardom opposite Kathy Bates in ‘Misery’ in 1990.
Once again in demand, Caan starred in ‘For the Boys’ with Bette Midler in 1991 as part of a song-and-dance team entertaining U.S. soldiers during World War II and the Korean and Vietnam wars. The following year he played a tongue-in-cheek version of Sonny Corleone in the comedy ‘Honeymoon in Vegas.’
Other later films included ‘Flesh and Bone,’ ‘Bottle Rocket’ and ‘Mickey Blue Eyes.’ He introduced himself to a new generation playing Walter, the workaholic, stone-faced father of Buddy´s Will Ferrell in ‘Elf.’
James Caan and Marlon Brando are pictured during the gangster classic that won legions of fans when it was released in the 1970s
Caan is pictured pointing his gun while wearing a dinner jacket in Mickey Blue Eyes. A cause of his death has not been revealed
James Caan and Anjelica are pictured in Huston Gardens Of Stone, which was released in 1987 and directed by Francis Ford Coppola
The acting legend is seen with Joaquin Phoenix during their parts in the film The Yards, which came out in 1999
The Godfather stars Robert Duvall, John Cazale, Gianni Russo, Talia Shire, Morgana King, Marlon Brando, James Caan are pictured
Caan had a checkered relationship history, and has been married four times. His first marriage to Dee Jay Mathis ended in 1966 after five years, and they share daughter Tara, 55.
Ten years later he tied the knot with Sheila Marie Ryan, but they divorced the following year in 1976, the same year they welcomed son Scott, 43.
In 1990, Caan married Ingrid Hajek, they welcomed son Alexander, 28, the following year and divorced in 1994.
His fourth marriage occurred in 1995, when he tied the knot to Linda Stokes. The couple had sons James, 24, and Jacob, 21, before divorcing in 2009, citing irreconcilable differences.
In 2016 he claimed his estranged wife Stokes was blowing through his savings and is forced to keep working in order to pay the bills according to legal documents found by TMZ.
The gossip site claimed he was currently paying $13,000 a month in child support for their two boys but it appeared she was asking for more money.
Perhaps the most striking claim in the documents was Caan felt the money issues were forcing him to take sub-par roles in order to keep up financially.
The docs read: ‘I am no longer willing to take parts in films and/or television shows which detract from the 50 years I have spent building my reputation.’
He goes on to say he had to do a drama named Sicilian Vampire, released in the summer of 2015, which was ‘humiliating’ as the New York City premiere only had 50 people show up.
In 1961, he married Dee Jay Mathis and had daughter Tara; they divorced in 1966. Caan’s second marriage to Sheila Marie Ryan – a former girlfriend of Elvis Presley – in 1976 was short-lived as they divorced the following year.
Their son, Scott Caan, who also is an actor, was born in 1976. Caan was married to Ingrid Hajek from September 1990 to March 1994; they had a son, Alexander, born 1991.