Donald Sutherland, one of Canada’s most versatile and gifted actors, who charmed and enthralled audiences in movies such as “M*A*S*H,” “Klute,” “Ordinary People” and “The Hunger Games,” has died at the age of 88.
The actor, whose lengthy career spanned from the 1960s into the 2020s, died on Thursday, his son, actor Kiefer Sutherland, said on social media.
A tall man with a deep voice, piercing blue eyes and a mischievous smile, Donald Sutherland switched effortlessly from character roles to romantic leads opposite the likes of Jane Fonda and Julie Christie. He also played his share of oddballs and villains.
One of the biggest stars in Hollywood in the 1970s, he remained in demand for film and TV projects into his 80s. Known for his unconventional looks and his versatility as an actor, Sutherland played a wide range of memorable characters.
These included a rascally Army surgeon in “M*A*S*H” (1970), a quirky tank commander in “Kelly’s Heroes” (1970), a small-town detective in “Klute” (1971), a stoned and libidinous professor in “Animal House” (1978), a local official facing an alien presence in “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” (1978) and a despairing father in “Ordinary People” (1980). He won a new generation of fans with his glorious portrayal of a despotic president in “The Hunger Games” (2012) and its sequels.
“I wish I could say thank you to all of the characters that I’ve played, thank them for using their lives to inform my life,” Sutherland said in his speech accepting an honorary Academy Award for lifetime achievement in 2017.
Kiefer Sutherland said his father was “never daunted by a role, good, bad or ugly.”
“He loved what he did and did what he loved, and one can never ask for more than that. A life well lived,” Kiefer Sutherland wrote on X.
Donald Sutherland was born on July 17, 1935, in Canada’s New Brunswick province, and was raised in Nova Scotia. He performed in school productions in college, moved to Britain to hone his craft, then moved to the United States, where his first big break came as a member of a top-notch ensemble cast in the war film “The Dirty Dozen” (1967).
He rocketed to fame three years later playing nonconformist surgeon Hawkeye Pierce in director Robert Altman’s Korean War satire “M*A*S*H” (1970). The film — later spun off into a TV series — depicted hijinks at a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, tapping into the anti-war sentiment among many Americans during the Vietnam War era.
Also in 1970, Sutherland starred alongside Telly Savalas and Clint Eastwood in “Kelly’s Heroes” as Sergeant Oddball on a mission to steal gold from the Nazis.
The following year, he was paired with Fonda, one of Hollywood’s luminaries, in “Klute,” and then in 1973 played a grieving father in “Don’t Look Now” that included a sizzling sex scene with Christie. “Klute” sparked a romance with Fonda, with whom he was active in the anti-Vietnam War movement.
His 1978 films could not have been more different. In the uproarious comedy “Animal House,” Sutherland played a professor who sleeps with the girlfriend of a fraternity member. “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” was a successful sci-fi remake of a classic 1956 original, telling the story of alien pods that take over human beings.
Sutherland’s performance in “Ordinary People,” Hollywood superstar Robert Redford’s directorial debut, helped the 1980 film win four Academy Awards, including best picture. Sutherland starred alongside Mary Tyler Moore and Timothy Hutton in this exploration of the splintering of a Midwestern family.
In the 1990s he appeared in films including “JFK” (1991), “Backdraft” (1991), “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (1992), “Outbreak” (1995), “A Time To Kill” (1996) and “Instinct” (1999) and won an Emmy Award for his performance in the 1995 HBO TV movie “Citizen X.” In the 2000s, he appeared in the acclaimed “Cold Mountain” (2003) and “Pride & Prejudice” (2005).
In the “Hunger Games” films in the 2010s about a dystopian future in which teenagers are sent into a deadly competition as mass entertainment, he reveled in playing the villainous President Coriolanus Snow.
“The reality was he had a country to run. At least he was running it, which is more than you can say for some people,” Sutherland told the Los Angeles Times in 2017.
“It was funny at the beginning with ‘The Hunger Games’ to walk through an airport and suddenly you feel this tug and you look down and it’s some young person — always a girl, never a boy,” Sutherland said. “And her mother is standing there and they say, ‘Could you take a photograph with my daughter?’ And we’d be standing beside each other and I’d be looking at the camera and the girl would say, ‘Could you look mean?’“
Tributes to Sutherland came in across Hollywood and Canada on Thursday.
Ron Howard, who directed Sutherland in “Backdraft,” called him “one of the most intelligent, interesting and engrossing film actors of all time.”
Sutherland had “incredible range, creative courage & dedication to serving the story & the audience with supreme excellence,” Howard wrote on X.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, speaking to reporters in Nova Scotia, said Sutherland “was a man with a strong presence, a brilliance in his craft and truly, truly a great Canadian artist.”
Sutherland was considered among the best actors to never receive an Academy Award nomination for any of his roles. He was married three times and had five children, including Kiefer.
Donald Sutherland, star of ‘M*A*S*H’ and ‘The Hunger Games’, dead at 88
https://arab.news/rnm8h
Donald Sutherland, star of ‘M*A*S*H’ and ‘The Hunger Games’, dead at 88
- Known for his unconventional looks and his versatility as an actor, Sutherland played a wide range of memorable characters
- Ron Howard, who directed Sutherland in ‘Backdraft,’ called him ‘one of the most intelligent, interesting and engrossing film actors of all time’
French musician joins Saudi talents for creative residency in historic Al-Balad
- Collaboration ‘fosters dialogue through music’ ahead of Jeddah concert
- Stracho Temelkovski: ‘Maybe it’s humility, maybe it’s the respect I feel in this area. I know it’s a very important place, and I feel good energy’
JEDDAH: A creative residency encouraging musical collaboration between Saudi and French artists was held in Jeddah’s Al-Balad this week.
The French Consulate General in Jeddah, in partnership with the Tariq Abdulhakim Museum, the French Embassy, and Alliance Francaise, brought together French musician Stracho Temelkovski and five Saudi artists for the residency.
Held from Nov. 27 to Dec. 5, the program featured multi-instrumentalist Temelkovski along with Saudi talents Sultan Al-Qurashi on oud, Ziyad Ayman Saeed on violin, Amin Mohammed Abu Harb on semsemiya, Abadi Abdulrahim Al-Qurashi on drums, and singer Mada Ali Al-Ghamdi.
Over several afternoons of musical exchange, they worked on a collaborative repertoire that will culminate in a public performance on Friday night, Dec. 5, at Festival Garden in Al-Balad’s Cultural Square.
Temelkovski described the residency as a natural extension of his lifelong artistic mission. “I really like to make bridges in my music,” he said. “That’s one of the aims. Music has to be something deep, and I try every time to make a real meeting with another culture.”
He added that the chance to collaborate with Saudi musicians resonated with his own background. “I have oriental roots from Macedonia. Even though I’m French, this inspired me to make this bridge happen with Saudi culture because it’s something different from what I’m used to, and it was really exciting.”
During his time in Jeddah’s Old Town, Temelkovski said Al-Balad became a source of quiet creative energy.
“I feel really welcomed at Al-Balad. It’s something you cannot explain. Maybe it’s humility, maybe it’s the respect I feel in this area. I know it’s a very important place, and I feel good energy. I feel I’m welcome. Every person, every musician I met and all the staff have been so kind to me.
“That’s not a small detail because I feel everyone is really involved, and it helps me be in a creative process.
“Being in this museum feels like meeting between my music and Saudi Arabia. Tariq Abdulhakim was one of the greatest musicians in this land, and I have the impression that I’m meeting his sons. It’s something very deep for me.”
Studying the late maestro’s compositions further shaped Temelkovski’s experience.
“I have listened to his music, and it really inspires me because I like this music. It’s so rich in the melodic interpretation and in the rhythm. I even feel a link with my Macedonian roots in the rhythmic way,” he said.
Mohammed Nehad, consul general of France in Jeddah, highlighted the significance of the collaboration, saying: “This artistic residency illustrates the ambition shared by France and Saudi Arabia to foster dialogue between traditions, open up new spaces for creativity, and support today’s talents.
Nehad said that meeting between Temelkovski and the Saudi musicians, made possible thanks to the commitment of the Tariq Abdulhakim Museum, “demonstrates the strength of Saudi Arabia’s musical heritage and the creativity that arises from the intersection of cultures.”
Larry Lamartiniere, managing director of Alliance Française, added: “This event perfectly embodies the mission of the Alliance Française Saudi Arabia which is building cultural bridges through dialogue, creativity and shared experiences.”
Saudi drummer Al-Qurashi said that the residency expanded his creative perspective.
“Working with Stracho mixed Arabic, French and Saudi styles, and it really changed how I listen, perform and connect with musicians. It was a big step for me personally, and it helps show the world the beauty of Saudi music when it blends with new cultures.”
Referring to the upcoming concert, he said: “I’m excited for the audience to feel the unique mix of Saudi and French styles and the new energy we created together.”
Singer Al-Ghamdi described the residency as an artistic turning point. “Working with him made everything feel easier, and he always made sure the work came from passion and authenticity, not from pressure or abdication.
“That really aligns with who I am as an artist,” she said. “I often struggle with rigidity and lack of creativity when collaborating with some musicians.
“In the past, I worked with artists who made me feel like art was exhausting and heavy. But Mr. Stracho brought me back to my core. He reminded me that art has no limits, no fixed rules, no single language or style. It’s a space full of freedom and humanity.”
Al-Ghamdi, whose style is a blend of Oriental, Arabic, English, and predominantly Western influences, said that the residency supported her global artistic ambitions.
“My goal is for my art to reach global audiences, not just the Gulf or Middle East. As a Saudi woman, I have a vision, feelings, and ideas I want to share proudly.
“I want to show the world the real Saudi culture — its beauty, strength, wisdom and pride.”
Preparing for the concert on Friday, Al-Ghamdi said she looked forward to bringing her authentic self to the stage. “I want the audience to feel the message that being true to yourself is powerful. There is no need to complicate things or fear judgment.
“The more authentic and open-minded we are, the faster we connect. Difference is the essence of beauty, and love is the foundation that brings us together. Clean, honest music is the best way to elevate the soul.”
Temelkovski expressed similar hopes for the final performance. “It’s the bridge. I want to share not just entertainment but a ritual together, a meeting between my identity and Saudi music and all these wonderful musicians.
“When music has no lyrics, sometimes it’s easier to be universal. I want to give something unique, something new. I want the experience to be a kind of meditation, but also to dance and express happiness.”
