HEALTH & WELLNESS

What Tim Curry Said About His Health Before His Death at 80

The Emmy-winning actor suffered a stroke in 2012.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show star Tim Curry died late Tuesday night, Aug. 25, at his home in Los Angeles.

Before his death at 80, the British Emmy, Grammy, and Tony-winning star experienced health issues for years.

Curry suffered a stroke in July 2012 during a massage.

Although he did not notice anything was wrong, the masseur saw warning signs and called 911. When Curry arrived at the hospital, he was rushed into brain surgery. He was 67 at the time.

In October 2025, he told The New York Times that he was still recovering from the moment that took him “way too close to death.”

“I’ve been recovering for quite a long time,” he said.

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“It’s a curious experience,” Curry added. “I didn’t know it was happening at the time. They told me at the hospital and operated on my brain and removed, I think, two blood clots, which is a sort of grim picture. I found that very difficult to cope with as an image.”

The medical emergency left Curry unable to speak for weeks, and the left side of his body was paralyzed. “It was very peculiar not to be able to speak, and to find a voice again was difficult,” he told the outlet.

In October 2025, he told The Guardian he still couldn’t use his left arm. He had three carers and used a wheelchair, and also revealed he had an aneurysm in his abdomen.

The most challenging part of his stroke, he said, was his short-term memory loss: “I can’t remember a f---ing thing. I’m not sure that I could do theater again.”

In his New York Times interview, Curry said he was not the first person in his family to have a stroke.

“I think my father had a stroke when he was 45 and died later from pneumonia,” he said. “He could only blink for yes and no. I dreaded that. I didn’t want that to happen to me.”

Curry was 12 when his father died in 1958.

Curry said he was trying to stay active even with limited mobility: “Since I was incapacitated, I spend a lot of time on or in my bed. But I try to get out as much as I can. I do little tours around the garden.”

His last public appearance was in New York City in November.

He attended The Rocky Horror Picture Show 50th Anniversary Spectacular Tour, and posed for photos with his costars Patricia Quinn, Barry Bostwick, and Nell Campbell.

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In October 2025, Curry replied to questions about feelings towards death in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning.

“I don’t fear death,” he said. “I try to avoid it as I think we all do. But I suspect that in the end I will welcome it.”

“I’m not galloping towards it,” he further clarified, adding, “I think I may well embrace it.”

Curry’s cause of death has not yet been publicly revealed.

A statement obtained by USA Today read, “Tim Curry, the iconic actor and entertainer globally beloved for his dynamic contributions to the stage and screen, passed away peacefully at his home in Toluca Lake, Los Angeles, on Aug. 25, 2026, confirmed by his longtime manager and friend Marcia Hurwitz.”

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