Prolific Comedic Actor Fred Willard Dead At 86

Maybe best known for his role in director Christoper Guest’s comedies like Best in Show (2000) and For Your Consideration (2006), Willard racked up nearly 500 appearances on film in the 50 years he worked.

Willard built up a reputation for himself on Hollywood sets for his ability to play a vast range of characters on any sort of production and his talent for comedic improvisation, according to Rolling Stone.

In addition to the Guest mockumentaries, he acted in others, including This Is Spinal Tap (1984), The History of White People in America (1985) and Lots of Luck (1985).

Willard made frequent appearances on sitcoms like Community, New Girl, and had Emmy-nominated runs on hit shows Modern Family and Everybody Loves Raymond.

In 1995, Willard acted out one of television’s first gay weddings on an episode of Roseanne, as part of a recurring role playing half of a gay couple with frequent co-star Martin Mull.

Willard scored acting credits on a diverse range of comedy films, from a news director in two Anchorman movies to a medical school dean in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004) and a mission commander in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1994).

One of Willard’s last roles was as a recurring character in Space Force, an upcoming Netflix satirical series about the new U.S. military branch, set to be released later this month.