Reg E. Cathey, House of Cards Emmy Winner and 30-Year Theater Vet, Dies at 59

Reg E. Cathey, an Emmy winner for his role as Freddy Hayes on the Netflix series House of Cards, and a three-decade veteran of the theater world, has died at the age of 59. According to reports, Cathey had been battling lung cancer.

Along with House of Cards, Cathey is known for his performances as Martin Querns on Oz and Norman Wilson on The Wire. He also made multiple appearances on the series Grimm, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Corner, and Square One Television, among other shows. In movies, his credits range from What About Bob? and The Mask to Fantastic Four.

While Cathey only made one appearance on Broadway, in Julie Taymor's 2000 production The Green Bird, off-Broadway, his credits date back to 1983. A longtime family member of the Public Theater's free Shakespeare in the Park series, his appearances at the Delacorte Theater include Richard III, Measure for Measure, and The Taming of the Shrew. At the Public's Lafayette Street home, Cathey starred in Love's Labour's Lost, Timon of Athens, Talk, Hamlet, and Macbeth. Other stage productions include Heresy at the Flea, The Shawshank Redemption in London, and off-Broadway's White Rabbit, Red Rabbit.

Cathey had been announced to star in Signature Theatre Company's 2017 revival of Stephen Adly Guirgis's Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, but bowed out of the production during rehearsals.