Actor Robert Carradine has died at 71

Robert Carradine, best known for his role as Lewis in the Revenge of the Nerds movies, has died at 71 from suicide after a two decade struggle with Bipolar Disorder. Carradine also hosted the TBS reality competition series King of the Nerds with his Nerds co-star Curtis Armstrong. His family issued the following statement:

“It is with profound sadness that we must share that our beloved father, grandfather, uncle, and brother Robert Carradine has passed away. In a world that can feel so dark, Bobby was always a beacon of light to everyone around him. We are bereft at the loss of this beautiful soul and want to acknowledge Bobby’s valiant struggle against his nearly two-decade battle with Bipolar Disorder. We hope his journey can shine a light and encourage addressing the stigma that attaches to mental illness. At this time we ask for the privacy to grieve this unfathomable loss. With gratitude for your understanding and compassion.”

Carradine was part of the American acting 'dynasty' with father John, siblings Keith and David, daughter Ever, and niece Martha Plimpton among them. Carradine made his big screen debut in 1972's The Cowboys opposite John Wayne, thanks to brother David convincing him to go on the audition. His only previous experience before that was in a guest role on Bonanza in 1971. Also in 1972, Carradine appeared in the TV movie Footsteps and guested on David's series, Kung Fu. 1973 saw him in small roles in TV movie Go Ask Alice and feature film Mean Streets, and in 1974 he reprised his The Cowboys role of Slim on the short-lived TV series adaptation.

Carradine continued to split his time between television and movies, with TV credits including The Hatfields and the McCoys, Run, Joe, Run, and Police Story, with credits in films including Aloha Bobby and Rose, Jackson County Jail, The Pom Pom Girls, Massacre at Central High and Orca. In 1978, he had a role in the Oscar-winning Coming Home, with Jon Voight and Jane Fonda, and followed that up with roles in The Long Riders, The Big Red One, TAG: The Assassination Game and Wavelength.

Carradine's biggest break came in 1984 in Revenge of the Nerds, which has developed a cult following since its release. That same year he also appeared in Just the Way You Are, but stuck mostly to television with credits that include The Fall Guy, The Sun Also Rises, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Faerie Tale Theatre, Monte Carlo, and Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8. In 1987 he starred with Billy Dee Williams in Number One with a Bullet, and reprised the role of Lewis in Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise. He returned again in 1992's Revenge of the Nerds III: The Next Generation, and in the 1994 TV movie, Revenge of the Nerd IV: Nerds in Love. His next biggest role came in Disney's 2001-2004 series Lizzie McGuire as father Sam, a role which he reprised in the theatrical film, The Lizzy McGuire Movie. He also reprised the role in the Disney+ reboot of the series, but the project fell apart after two episodes had been completed due to creative differences between the producers and the studio.

Highlights among Carradine's TV credits include the 1986 version of The Twilight Zone, I Saw What You Did, The Hitchhiker, The Incident, Clarence (where he took on the role of angel Clarence Odbody from It's a Wonderful Life with a new mission), The Tommyknockers, Body Bags, Sirens, ER, Lois & Clark, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, Humanoids from the Deep, Dark Skies, The Pretender, NYPD Blue, The Practice, Vengeance Unlimited, Nash Bridges, Monte Walsh, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Robot Chicken, Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda, Doubt and Tales of the Wild West.

Film credits include Heartaches, All's Fair, The Player, Escape from L.A., Scorpio One, Gunfighter, Lycanthrope, Dangerous Curves, Ghosts of Mars, Max Keeble's Big Move, Supercross, The Terror Experiment, Fancypants, Django Unchained, American Christmas, High Holiday, The Night They Came Home, and Skate to Hell, his final released project to date. According to IMDB, Carradine had several projects in pre- and post-production, including Desert Fiends 2, Pay to Die, Sorority Shark Attack, The 3 Killer Pigs and The Driver, with two others listed as completed: Night of the Living Dead and The Cowboy Killer.

In the late 1980s, he and Mare Winningham formed a band called The Waybacks, and he played guitar with his childhood hero, Peter Yarrow, and folk legend Ramblin' Jack Elliott. He was also an accomplished race car driver, competing at Grand Prix level, and was a driver on team Lotus with Paul Newman. Carradine raised daughter Ever as a single dad, and then met Edith Mani in 1990 and added two more children to the family. Niece Martha Plimpton called him everyone's favorite uncle. He is remembered by his family for being all heart, and friends with anyone he met.

If you or someone you know needs support right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, the Trevor Project at 1-866-488-7386 or reach the Crisis Text Line by texting “START” to 741741.