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Actor Mark Margolis, who played Hector Salamanca in Breaking Bad and its spin-off Better Call Saul, died at the age of 83 at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City on Thursday (August 3), his son, Morgan, announced via Deadline.com.
Margolis appeared in eight episodes of Breaking Bad from 2009-11, playing a former drug kingpin who oversaw the Albuquerque meth trade from his nursing home, earning him an Emmy nomination for 'Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama series' in 2012. The Philadelphia native continued the role for 22 episodes in Better Call Saul, a spin-off based on Bob Odenkirk's character Saul Goodman's transformation from former con artist Jimmy McGill, which also provided a backstory to the Salamanca character.
Margolis had a breakout supporting role in Scarface (1983), playing Alberto, aka The Shadow, a bodyguard to international drug lord Alejandro Sosa (played by Paul Shenar), the main antagonist to Tony Montana (played by Al Pacino). The veteran actor also had supporting roles in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), Requiem for a Dream (2000), The Wrestler (2008), Black Swan (2010) and Noah (2014) among his more than 70 film credits in an acting career that spanned five decades.
"He was one of a kind. We won’t see his likes again. He was a treasured client and a lifelong friend. I was lucky to know him,” said Margolis' manager Robert Kolker in a statement to Deadline.com