Superman’s most savage villain just hit his final credits roll. Terence Stamp, the legendary English actor who made “Kneel before Zod” the most terrifying sentence in comic book cinema, has died at the age of 87.
His family confirmed the news on Sunday (August 17) with a statement that was basically like: his acting, his writing, his entire existence was top tier and will still inspire generations. No cause of death has been released, so don’t start your conspiracy threads yet.
Stamp was the guy in British cinema back in the 1960s, starring in hits like Billy Budd (Oscar nomination flex), The Collector, and Far From the Madding Crowd. He went from indie darling to international menace when he became the one and only General Zod in Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980). To this day, he’s still the blueprint for evil supervillains everywhere.
But Zod wasn’t his only gig. Terence had range. We’re talking The Limey, Wall Street, Young Guns, Alien Nation, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (iconic drag queen road trip movie, btw), and Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (yes, he went from DC to a galaxy far, far away). He even voiced Superman’s dad, Jor-El, on Smallville decades later—talk about full circle energy.
Outside of film, Stamp was also a published author and wrote several autobiographies because apparently being an actor in some of the most legendary movies ever wasn’t enough.
At 87, Terence Stamp leaves behind a career that literally defined cinema villainy, inspired pop culture, and proved that British actors have been eating Hollywood alive since before TikTok existed.
