LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Mexican character actor Sergio Calderon, who appeared in hit films like 'The In-Laws', 'Men in Black', and 'Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End', has died at the age of 77. Calderon gained fame for his role as Jose in the 1997 film 'Men in Black'.
A family spokesman stated that Calderon died suddenly on Wednesday, May 31 in a hospital in Los Angeles from natural causes, according to Hollywood Reporter. Calderon, who was born on July 21, 1945, spent his early years in a tropical village before moving to Mexico City at the age of 10. He started learning acting at the Instituto Andres Soler of the Asociacion Nacional de Actores. He is survived by his widow Karen Dakin, his children Johanna Calderon-Dakin and Patrick Calderon-Dakin, the vice president of the public relations firm The Mesulam Group, his son-in-law Raaj, and his grandchildren Krishnaavi, Emiliano, and Victoria.
Hated villain
Over the course of his lengthy career, the actor played a lot of villains. "I love to play those types of characters, because people really hate me," Calderon said in an interview that was released just days before he died.
"They tell me in the streets how much they hate me. But to me, that is my success. Because that means I was able to convince people with what I performed," Calderon concluded. His debut on the big screen happened in 1970 when he appeared in the Mexican-produced film 'The Bridge in the Jungle'.
Calderon's Hollywood roles
Calderon became part of the Screen Actors Guild after landing a role in the 1979 comedy 'The In-Laws', and he later relocated to Los Angeles to seek a career in Hollywood. He appeared in well-known films like 'Little Fockers', 'The Revengers', and 'The A-Team'.
Calderon portrayed a Mexican rebel in the Sergio Leone film 'Duck, You Sucker!' (1971). Later, he co-starred with Albert Finney as a ferocious Mexican police chief in John Huston's 1984 picture 'Under the Volcano'.
In the first episode of 'The A-Team' on NBC in 1983, Calderon made an appearance as the colorful bandit Malavida Valdese. A year later, at the beginning of the third season, he made another appearance as the river pirate El Cajon (The Coffin).
Fans of the original 'Men in Black' (1997) will recognize Calderon as the "head on a stick" held by an extraterrestrial "illegal alien" attempting to sneak across the US-Mexico border in the Barry Sonnenfeld film. He even played Alfonso, one of the Hondurans, in the Arthur Hiller comedy 'The In-Laws' (1979), which earned him his SAG card. Later, in 'Pirates of the Caribbean 3: At World's End' (2007), Calderon portrayed Spanish pirate lord Capt Vallenueva.
