Actor Bud Cort Dead at 77: Harold and Maude Star Succumbs to Illness

Robert Altman discovered Bud Cort in a small revue and launched a career that would define 1970s counterculture cinema.

Cort died February 11, 2026, at 77 in a Connecticut assisted-living facility from pneumonia complications. His friend Dorian Hannaway confirmed he’d battled a long illness before his death in Norwalk.

The actor became an icon by playing Harold Chasen in Harold and Maude—a death-obsessed teenager who finds life through a 79-year-old Holocaust survivor.

The Final Details

• Died: February 11, 2026
• Age: 77 years old​
• Cause of death: Pneumonia complications​
• Death location: Assisted-living facility, Norwalk, Connecticut​
• Real name: Walter Edward Cox​
• Birthdate: March 29, 1948​
• Birthplace: Rye, New York​
• First films: MAS*H and Brewster McCloud (both 1970)
• Career defining role: Harold Chasen, Harold and Maude (1971)
• Total works: Over 80 films and TV series​
• Awards: Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations​

Altman’s Golden Eye

Robert Altman saw something special in Cort performing in a revue and immediately cast him in two 1970 projects. Both MAS*H and Brewster McCloud became hits.

In MAS*H, Cort played the sensitive Private Boone with a vulnerability that stood out among the film’s cynical surgeons. Altman recognized that Cort’s quirky energy made him perfect for unconventional roles.

That instinct launched Cort into Harold and Maude, the film that would both make and limit his career.​

The Performance That Trapped Him

Harold and Maude turned Cort into “a household name and a film idol of the anti-establishment 1970s,” according to the New York Times. But it also “limited his growth as an actor” by forever associating him with one character.​

Harold Chasen stages elaborate fake suicides—hangings, self-immolations, ritual killings—that barely register with his wealthy mother. He drives a hearse to random funerals for entertainment.

At one funeral, he meets Maude (Ruth Gordon), a 79-year-old living in an abandoned train car who shares his death fascination but approaches life with radical joy. Director Hal Ashby reveals the concentration camp number on her arm, explaining her profound perspective.​

The unconventional romance earned Cort Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations. The film became a cult classic that defined independent cinema.

But Cort never escaped Harold’s shadow. Even decades later, fans constantly recognized him as that death-obsessed teenager.​

The 1970s Work Beyond Harold

Cort didn’t stop working after Harold and Maude. During the 1970s, he appeared in the comedy-drama Why Shoot the Teacher? and a television adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Bernice Bobs Her Hair alongside Shelley Duvall.​

He built a respectable career across stage, screen, and eventually voice work. But the 1979 car accident changed everything.

Two Crashes 32 Years Apart

The 1979 accident left Cort with fractures to his arm and leg that required plastic surgery. The injuries limited his opportunities throughout the 1980s.​

He was rebuilding his career when a 2011 car crash severely injured his arm again. The damage made it challenging to find work in his later years.​

These accidents bookended his career, likely contributing to his eventual need for assisted living.

Animation Gave Him New Life

Cort found a second career in voice work. He contributed to Batman, The Mask, and Superman—becoming part of DC’s animated universe.

His television roles included Ugly Betty, Criminal Minds, and Arrested Development. He appeared in Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, introducing his quirky energy to a new generation of indie film fans.

Even in these roles, fans recognized him as Harold.​

Why Harold and Maude Endures

The film broke every Hollywood convention. It presented death as something to contemplate rather than fear. It showed a romance between a 19-year-old and 79-year-old as genuinely moving.

Cort’s vulnerability and deadpan humor made audiences root for an impossible relationship. His performance turned what could have been absurd into one of cinema’s most beloved love stories.

The film influenced generations of independent filmmakers who learned that unconventional stories could resonate deeply when performed with authenticity.

The Quiet End

Born Walter Edward Cox on March 29, 1948, in Rye, New York, Cort spent over five decades in entertainment. He appeared in more than 80 films and TV series.

He died in an assisted-living facility in Norwalk, Connecticut, from pneumonia complications. His friend Dorian Hannaway confirmed he’d battled a prolonged illness.

A family spokesperson announced his death, noting he passed quietly away from Hollywood’s spotlight. He had been living in the facility for an undisclosed period.​

Cort leaves behind a filmography spanning decades, but one role towers above the rest. Harold Chasen—the boy who loved death until he learned to love life—remains his lasting gift to cinema.

The actor who made death obsession beautiful finally found his own peace at 77.