James Ransone, star of ‘The Wire’ and ‘It Chapter Two’, dies aged 46
James Ransone, who starred in The Wire, Generation Kill, and It Chapter Two, has died at age 46.
The actor died Friday (December 19) by suicide, according to the Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s Office. He was found by police at his home.
Ransone’s breakout role was as dock worker Ziggy Sobotka in season two of HBO’s hit show The Wire in 2003. Five years later, he appeared alongside Alexander Skarsgård in the miniseries Generation Kill as real-life Marine Cpl. Josh Ray Person.
He was known for his performances in horror movies, including Sinister, Sinister 2, In a Valley of Violence, Black Phone, and Black Phone 2, which was his final project.
In 2019, he starred as adult Eddie Kaspbrak in It Chapter Two alongside co-stars Bill Hader, Jessica Chastain, and James McAvoy.
Ransone was born in Baltimore in 1979. He attended the Carver Center for Arts and Technology in Towson, Maryland, from 1993 to 1997. He got his first break co-starring in the 2002 teen drama Ken Park before landing his role on The Wire a year later.
In 2021, Ransone shared that he was sexually abused by a former tutor who worked in Maryland public schools, per the Baltimore Sun.
Per Page Six, in 2020, Ransone reported the abuse he described, but authorities declined to pursue criminal charges.
He later shared that the abuse was a factor in alcohol and heroin addictions that he later struggled with.
In 2016, Ransone spoke to Interview magazine of how he would “wrestle with the catharsis of acting”.
Speaking about often playing characters who are not likeable, Ransone said: “So I find myself living in a lot of unlikable skin. As a result of that, I don’t always feel good.”
Tributes to Ransone poured out on social media Sunday following the news of his death, with The Wire creator David Simon sharing a picture of the late actor with no caption on Bluesky.
Heated Rivalry actor Francois Arnaud remembered the actor on his Instagram Story as a “unique actor that I was continuously impressed and inspired by.”