Remembering Philip Seymour Hoffman

Yesterday was a sad day for anyone passionate about cinema and about acting, Philip Seymour Hoffman, was found dead in his apartment of an apparent drug overdose. He was 46. Philip Seymour Hoffman was extraordinary, an actor, producer and director both on stage and on the screen, he captivated audiences for over two decades with his versatile and deft performances in entertaining movies ranging from indie dramas to popcorn movies, starring in films at each end of the spectrum such as 'Synecdoche, New York' and 'Magnolia' to 'The Hunger Games', and 'Mission Impossible III'.

Philip Seymour Hoffman will be remembered as one of the greatest actors of a generation, a man unafraid to take risks, and play characters so incredibly different. From rebel Plutarch Heavensbee in Catching Fire to Scotty J. In Boogie Nights. Philip Seymour Hoffman was nominated for four Oscars and three Tony Awards, never afraid to take risks, Hoffman discussed risqué topics in films like Doubt, where he played a pedophile, and in Flawless, in which he played a drag queen. Philip Seymour Hoffman's career in retrospect will be defined by risk taking and versatility, and a fearless ability to take on even the lightest of roles with a surprising amount of dedication.

Philip Seymour Hoffman is perhaps best known for his Oscar winning performance in the 2005 film Capote, which he also produced. In this film Hoffman plays novelist Truman Capote, as he attempts to write 'In Cold Blood', perhaps his most defining novel. Hoffman truly becomes Capote, taking on his voice, poise and mannerisms. Capote was a flamboyant and lavish homosexual, a fact that would have daunted most actors, but Hoffman seems unfazed by this, and slips so seamlessly into this figure that we soon forget which actor we are watching on screen. Hoffman gives one of the best performances of the decade in this historical drama.

Hoffman is also known for his roles in The Master, in which he played a charismatic leader attempting to recruit an ex navy soldier into scientology, Charlie Wilsons War, in which he played a soldier in the afgan-soviet war and in Doubt, in which he played a pedophillic priest attempting to convince a nun of his innocence. Younger readers will perhaps recognise Hoffman from The Hunger Games Franchise, in which he plays Plutarch Heavensbee, a role he will reprise in Mockingjay, given that he had completed most of his scenes before his death.

Philip Seymour Hoffman is an actor who will be defined by his daring, risk taking roles, a genius who refused to be typecast and who played the most diverse roles of any actor on stage and on screen, who illuminated the screen with his merest presence, and who managed to be simply mesmerizing with the smallest of gestures, a legend who lives on in the films and stories that we all love.

"Actors are responsible to the people we play." - Philip Seymour Hoffman