THE FINAL FRONTIER

NED BEATTY 1937-2021

SFX salutes Superman’s unforgettable Otis

Never destined for leading man status, Ned Beatty carved out an enviable niche as one of Hollywood’s most in-demand character actors. Making, he was Oscar-nominated for an incendiary performance in (1976). 1978’s saw him as the perfect comic stooge, Otis, dim-witted henchman to Gene Hackman’s eternally exasperated criminal genius Lex Luthor. As Beatty recalled, director Richard Donner “had more fun with my character than even I did. He loved that character for some reason… That was a special experience.” Kentucky-born Beatty reprised the role in 1980’s . Other genre credits include , 1990’s and the voice of Lotso, the menacing teddy bear in .