Michael Madsen's physician has shed light on the circumstances surrounding the actor's untimely demise. According to his cardiologist, who spoke to NBC4 Los Angeles, the seasoned collaborator of Quentin Tarantino succumbed to heart failure, exacerbated by underlying heart disease and alcoholism. He was 67 years old.
On July 3, Madsen was discovered unresponsive in his Malibu residence. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that he passed away from natural causes at the scene, ruling out any foul play.
Following his passing, his sister, Virginia Madsen, expressed that the family was not mourning a public figure, but rather a flesh-and-blood individual with a fierce heart. "He was thunder and velvet," the Candyman actress stated in a July 3 tribute to Variety. "Mischief wrapped in tenderness. A poet disguised as an outlaw. A father, a son, a brother—a complex figure etched in contradiction, tempered by a love that left an indelible mark."
Remembering her brother as a man who "stormed through life loud, brilliant, and half on fire," she added, "I’ll miss our inside jokes, the spontaneous laughter, and the very sound of his voice. I’ll miss the boy he was before the legend took shape; I miss my big brother deeply."
Madsen's death comes six years after he was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol following a car crash in March 2019, where his vehicle collided with a pole. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Kill Bill actor served four days in jail, in addition to probation for the incident.
In September, Madsen—a father of seven—filed for divorce from his wife of 28 years, DeAnna Madsen, alleging that their late 26-year-old son Hudson had been driven to suicide by "her neglect, drinking, and alcoholism." However, he later retracted these allegations, writing on Instagram in October, "I was not the writer of this story and wish my wife no harm or embarrassment."
He continued, "I deeply apologize for not correcting this earlier, but I love my wife and our other four children, and have no desire for divorce or blame. She had absolutely nothing to do with what happened to our son." Madsen also shares two children with Jeannine Bisignano and a daughter with Dana Mechling.
