In addition to his well-known roles, character actor Peter Greene appeared in major films including The Usual Suspects and Training Day.
Peter Greene is an American actor best known for portraying intense, edgy, and unforgettable characters in Hollywood films during the 1990s, died at his New York City home Friday, his manager confirmed. He was 60.
Greene was found dead in his Lower East Side apartment, according to his manager, Gregg Edwards, who did not reveal the cause of death.
In 1994, Greene delivered memorable performances as Zed in Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction and as the antagonist Dorian in Jim Carrey’s The Mask.
“Nobody played a villain better than Peter,” Edwards said in a phone interview. “Yet he also had a gentle side that few people ever saw, and a heart of gold.”
According to Edwards, reports of music playing in the apartment for more than 24 hours triggered a wellness check. He said he last spoke with Greene earlier this week.
In addition to his supporting roles, Greene starred in the 1993 film “Clean, Shaven” in which he played a man with schizophrenia who is suspected in a murder and who at times self-mutilates.
Greene’s performance turned the role he played “into a compellingly anguished, volatile character, someone who didn’t even have to slice himself up to get an audience’s attention.
As a respected character actor, Peter Greene also appeared in notable films such as The Usual Suspects and Training Day, further cementing his reputation for intense and memorable performances.
In The Usual Suspects (1995), Greene played Redfoot, a criminal fence who tips off the crime crew about a jewelry store robbery. The heist ultimately turns deadly, becoming a key moment in the film’s twisting narrative.
Greene later delivered another unforgettable performance in Training Day (2001), where he portrayed Jeff, a detective caught in a web of corruption. In the film, Jeff is shot by Alonzo Harris — famously played by Denzel Washington — as part of an effort by the corrupt officers to fabricate a story and cover up the murder of a former narcotics officer.
After Harris kills the ex-narcotics officer inside his home, Greene’s character agrees to be shot while wearing a bullet-resistant vest to make it appear that police had been fired upon first. The scene includes one of Greene’s most memorable lines, when he says, “Kiss me, baby,” just before Harris shoots him twice.
Peter Greene was born on October 8, 1965, in Montclair, New Jersey. He began his acting career in his 20s while living in New York City, according to his biography on IMDb.
According to his manager, Gregg Edwards, Greene is survived by a sister and a brother.