RIP: Philip Seymour Hoffman

Philip Seymour Hoffman in Capote

I just read the completely shocking and horrifying news that one of the greatest actors working today, Philip Seymour Hoffman, was discovered dead in his NYC apartment.

Details are scarce but he was only 46 years old and a drug overdose is suspected as the cause.

I am totally stunned by this news. I always thought of Hoffman as one of our best American character actors and someone who would have a very long, very productive career.

I am sure we will learn more about this tragedy soon but in the meantime I just wanted to pay tribute to this amazing talent by calling out some of my favorite performances of his.

He was such a chameleon, such a generous actor with no vanity. He gave so many great performances in so many movies I hardly know where to begin.

Capote (2005): His Truman Capote was captivating. He was able to rise above doing a caricature of one our most celebrated authors and revealed his troubled, pathetic soul. A fantastic underrated movie that won Hoffman a richly deserved best actor Oscar.

The Savages (2007): Alongside an equally compelling Laura Linney (as his sister), Hoffman is believable and endearing as a put-upon writer struggling to figure out how to deal with his father's deteriorating health. A bittersweet comedy that really makes you reflect on your own life choices.

Boogie Nights (1997): As the lonely and socially inept Dusty, an oddball hanger-on in the porn world of this film, Hoffman was willing to let himself look ugly and lost which made him a standout in an all-star cast which included heavy hitters like Julianne Moore and Mark Wahlberg.

Magnolia (1999): A rare "normal guy" role for Hoffman. He plays a genteel caregiver taking care of Tom Cruise's dying father (played by the late Jason Robards). He is arguably the "heart" of this sprawling, challenging film -- one of the few characters who is just trying to do good in this world.

Mission Impossible III (2006): A lot of people didn't think Hoffman had the heft to play a real villain in a mainstream blockbuster but he was awesome and scary in this J.J. Abrams installment which re-charged the franchise and made Tom Cruise believable as a secret agent again.

Punch-Drunk Love (2002): A small but uproarious part. Hoffman plays a foul-mouthed buffoon of a bad guy opposite Adam Sandler's sweet but slightly disturbed salesman. I will never stop laughing when I think of Hoffman screaming "shut shut shut up" and the top of his lungs.

The Ides of March (2011): Hoffman holds his own in a phenomenal ensemble cast in George Clooney's political drama. He has a fantastic monologue about loyalty and emerges as the arguably most noble character in the film about the dark nature of the our political process.

And these are just my personal highlights.

I could also mention The Master, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Doubt, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead or The Big Lebowski -- honestly he has so many great roles it's overwhelming.

Hoffman had been shooting the last installments of The Hunger Games, which were sure to be the most successful films he'd ever starred in -- at 46, he had so much career ahead of him. This loss is just so mind blowing to me. These roles just scratch the surface of an actor that people will revere for generations.

Mr. Hoffman, you will be missed.