Veteran actor Tchéky Karyo, star of Nikita and The Missing, dies at 72 | Movies

Tchéky Karyo, who appeared in some of director Luc Besson’s biggest hits and a string of international films, died on Friday at the age of 72, his family announced.

A statement from his wife and children to AFP said he had “succumbed to cancer”.

The actor appeared in many action and adventure films, sometimes as the lead, but more often in supporting roles. Born in Istanbul, Turkey in 1953, he started out in French cinema in the 1980s, receiving awards and nominations early on.

He was the hunter in Jean-Jacques Annaud’s 1988 wilderness adventure The Bear. In 1990, he gained attention for his turn as the tough-as-nails secret agent who handled Anne Parillaud’s female assassin Nikita in Besson’s hit film of the same name.

Karyo’s talent for languages ​​– he spoke French, English and Spanish, among others – soon saw him appearing in international productions, such as Ridley Scott’s historical epic 1492: Conquest of Paradise. He later appeared in major Hollywood films, including Bad Boys as drug lord Fouchet, and the James Bond film Golden Eye as the Russian Minister of Defense.

He worked steadily in film and television over the next few decades France and abroad, appearing in films as varied as Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s 2001 whimsical comedy Amélie and Brazilian director Walter Salles’ 1995 thriller Foreign Land.

Probably his best-known role for British audiences came late in his career, as French detective Julien Baptiste in two series of the BBC crime show The Missing, and its spin-off Baptiste.