Remembering The Late, Great Nicky Katt, Who Stole Scenes for Soderbergh, Nolan, and More

Photo: Everett Collection

Steven Soderbergh’s The Limey runs for 89 minutes, a genuinely hard-boiled and concise crime thriller astir an older man investigating nan decease of his daughter, from a head who values a trim runtime. (Soderbergh has put retired 2 features successful 2025, and their mixed magnitude is astir nan aforesaid arsenic The Batman or Avengers: Endgame.) In that ruthlessly edited context, it’s a small astonishing that nan movie is capable to region for a fewer minutes to observe a insignificant characteristic doing shtick, seemingly improvised by nan actor. Such was nan powerfulness of Nicky Katt.

Katt, who recently died pursuing a struggle pinch depression, had an different career. In television, he followed a reasonably emblematic way of booking progressively high-profile impermanent roles until he landed a large one: Playing nan troubled, charismatic wiseass coach Harry Senate, a lead domiciled connected Fox’s four-season play Boston Public. Katt didn’t past each 4 seasons, leaving early successful nan 3rd to prosecute much movie roles, though he ne'er landed immoderate arsenic prominent. Even arsenic a TV character turned big-screen “that guy,” he didn’t summation arsenic overmuch prominence arsenic personification like, say, Michael Shannon aliases Shea Whigham.

What he did, though, was cultivate a bid of relationships pinch immoderate genuinely fantabulous filmmakers. After his memorable move successful Dazed And Confused, Richard Linklater hired him 3 much times. Perhaps he recommended Katt to chap Austinite Robert Rodriguez, who put him successful Sin City and Planet Terror. He besides did 2 for David Gordon Green, and 2 for Christopher Nolan, including an uncredited portion successful The Dark Knight; he’s nan bull riding on a disguised Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman) during nan celebrated truck-chase sequence. He’s nan only character to look successful that movie and besides nan much-maligned Batman & Robin. (Not arsenic nan aforesaid character, sadly.)

Katt was ever a invited beingness successful these spot parts; visually, he could vanish capable into a domiciled arsenic a criminal aliases a bull that it mightiness return moreover a dedicated instrumentality a infinitesimal to timepiece him. The infinitesimal of realization would typically travel erstwhile his characteristic would show offbeat irreverence for nan action astatine hand, for illustration his low-key amazement aft getting tally done by an arrow successful Sin City. He could beryllium deadpan aliases he could beryllium animated successful his hostility; either way, he fulfilled nan changeless character-actor assignment, which is to make an belief almost wholly done shorthand: vibe, delivery, projecting a persona without belaboring it.

Which brings america to Katt’s activity pinch Soderbergh. In The Limey, he plays Stacy, a hitman hired to return retired Wilson (Terence Stamp), nan rampaging aged man seeking answers and revenge. He’s introduced nonchalantly picking a conflict complete excavation (“does that mean you forfeit?” he deadpans aft knocking his force out), and his astir celebrated segment has conscionable arsenic small to do pinch his usability successful nan mechanics of nan plot: While watching their target, Stacy and his partner lurk astir a movie set, wherever Stacy muses astir realistic shows he’d for illustration to spot (“Like Sick Old Man, aliases Skinny Little Weakling… Big Fat Guy, wouldn’t you watch a show called Big Fat Guy?”) and mean-spiritedly roasts extras and PAs for his ain amusement.

Katt, who apparently improvised immoderate of this material, evidently enjoyed goofing connected nan acting lifestyle; he did truthful moreover much straight successful his different domiciled for Soderbergh, successful nan experimental drama Full Frontal. He plays, uh, Hitler. Specifically, he plays an unnamed character who has taken nan domiciled of Hitler successful a play. Katt is very funny passim nan film, ne'er moreso erstwhile ranting, fundamentally unprompted, astir 1 of his much different practices arsenic an actor. The clip is sadly obscurity to beryllium recovered online, truthful I’ll quote Katt’s presumably ad-libbed consequence to nan truth that nan play’s Ava Braun has quit:

“You cognize what? Fuck her. And here’s why. Number one: Anyone who’s offended by drinking blood, evidently doesn’t portion blood. Number two: Anyone who drinks arsenic overmuch humor arsenic I do knows it has nary effect. Number three: There is perfectly nary technological relationship betwixt drinking a changeable of humor a time and being an bonzer actor. Number four: It is intolerable to beryllium number three.”

It’s a mini infinitesimal that nevertheless made maine laughter astir arsenic difficult arsenic I’ve ever laughed successful a movie theater. What makes it truthful funny – what makes a batch of Katt characters truthful funny, but particularly successful his Soderbergh movies – is really intelligibly it suggests a full unseen personification pinch hang-ups and convictions that Full Frontal, arsenic a movie, is not designed to get afloat into; they’re funnier arsenic implications, anyway. Lots of awesome characteristic actors execute this trick; Katt was peculiarly adept astatine making nan process funny arsenic good arsenic weirdly insightful astir immoderate lowlife aliases oddball he was playing. (Both visually and vocally, he brings to mind Ben Stiller, for illustration a type of Stiller who has fixed up successful nan societal niceties that are often his undoing.)

That quality, on pinch his deficiency of ubiquity, made Katt a spot unknowable arsenic a performer, which only accrued his mystique. It seems apt now that astatine immoderate constituent successful his career, he must person been hiding a awesome woody of pain. If he was channeling immoderate greater dissatisfaction successful these parts (quoting The Limey again, dismissing his partner’s statement that a female they’re watching “looks nice”: “You deliberation she’s immoderate happier?”), what a awesome gift to create hints of a full different life down it, and to make group laughter while doing so.

Jesse Hassenger (@rockmarooned) is simply a writer surviving successful Brooklyn podcasting astatine www.sportsalcohol.com. He’s a regular contributor to The A.V. Club, Polygon, and The Week, among others.