LAW & Order: Special Victims Unit star Richard Belzer has died at the age of 78.
Belzer was known for his role as Detective John Munch in the long-standing crime series and his stand-up comedy career.
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Belzer reportedly passed away Sunday morning at his home in Bozouls in southwest France, per The Hollywood Reporter.
Bill Scheft, writer and longtime friend of Belzer, confirmed this to the publication.
“He had lots of health issues, and his last words were, ‘F**k you, motherf**ker,’” Scheft explained.
A cause of death has yet to be confirmed for the actor.
Laraine Newman, an original Saturday Night Live cast member, took to Twitter to confirm the situation in a recent post.
“I’m so sad to hear of Richard Belzer’s passing. I loved this guy so much. He was one of my first friends when I got to New York to do SNL,” Newman wrote.
“One of the funniest people ever. A master at crowd work. RIP dearest.”
Newman worked alongside Belzer from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, per TMZ.
Belzer starred in Law & Order: SVU for 15 seasons.
He first appeared as the character of John Munch in 1993 on the television series, Homicide: Life on the Street.
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When the show was canceled in 1996, Belzer felt his time as Munch was unfinished and proceeded to guest star in Law & Order episodes as the character for a few years.
According to the 2009 book Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Unofficial Companion, Belzer called creator Dick Wolf to try and become Detective Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach)’s partner on the original series.
However, Wolf said he had already cast actor Jessie Martin at the time to play the character of Ed Green.
Fortunately for Belzer, Wolf was in the process of developing Law & Order: SVU and made sure Detective John Munch transferred over from Baltimore to New York City to join Detective Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni).
Meloni took to Twitter on Sunday to pay two tributes to his co-star.
“Good bye mon ami. I love you. #TheBelz,” the 61-year-old wrote above a picture of him kissing Belzer on the cheek.
The second post was a heartwarming old photo of Hargitay feeding Belzer on the Law & Order: SVU set.
The actor continued to play Munch from 1999 until 2016 on Law & Order: SVU, the first spin-off from the famed original series and the longest-running crime drama in history, per NBC.
Belzer’s character of Detective Munch became recognized by several other television series, including The Beat, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, and The Wire, where he would appear in episodes.
Munch also appeared as a joke in comedic series like Arrested Development, 30 Rock, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.
Belzer got his start in the entertainment industry through his multiple parts in 1974’s The Groove Tube, per IMDb.
After, he quickly rose to comedic stardom by being part of SNL’s initial seasons.
Some may have seen Belzer’s brief role in Scarface in 1983, while others might remember his appearance during 1999’s Man on the Moon, starring Jim Carrey as comedian Andy Kaufman.
For more related content, check out The U.S. Sun’s coverage of everything you need to know about Ned Eisenberg’s character on Law & Order.
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