Treat Williams, a seasoned actor who appeared in the TV series “Blue Bloods” and “Everwood,” died Monday night in a motorbike accident in Vermont, according to his longtime agent, Barry McPherson.
He was 71.
While local officials have not officially identified Williams, Jacob Gribble, the fire chief for Dorset, Vermont, told People that the collision occurred on Route 30 by Long Trail Auto near Dorset on Monday at 5 p.m. EST. According to Gribble, investigators suspect the driver of a car was turning and did not spot Williams on his motorbike when the accident happened. Gribble has been contacted by CNN for comment. According to a Facebook post by Manchester, VT fire authorities, one individual was evacuated to a regional medical centre and another was transferred by ground ambulance.
Richard Treat Williams was born in Rowayton, Connecticut, and studied theatre in college before relocating to New York soon after graduation. There, he was cast as John Travola’s understudy in “Grease” and ultimately replaced him as Danny Zuko.
Williams’ varied movie career began with an early appearance in director Milos Forman’s version of the musical “Hair” in 1979, followed by a major role in the gritty undercover criminal thriller “Prince of the City” two years later with another A-list director, Sidney Lumet.
While Williams appeared to be on the verge of becoming a major star, his subsequent films failed to live up to his early promise, though he continued to work steadily, including in a TV movie remake of “A Streetcar Named Desire” and additional TV movies in which he played boxer Jack Dempsey and FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover.
In the 1990s, he played the antagonist in the pulp-comic adaption “The Phantom” and super-agent Michael Ovitz in the HBO film based on the book “The Late Shift,” about the “Tonight Show” succession war between Jay Leno and David Letterman. For the performance, he received a Primetime Emmy nomination.
Later that decade, Williams starred as a prominent action actor in the B-movie “Deep Rising,” about a vicious sea monster, with Famke Janssen, Wes Studi, and Djimon Hounsou.
Williams then found fresh success in television, appearing for four seasons on the CW’s “Everwood” in the aughts and more recently on “Chicago Fire.” He was also a regular on “Chesapeake Shores,” appearing in 53 episodes from 2016 to 2022. He also appeared in the HBO miniseries “We Own This City,” produced by David Simon, about corruption and internal politics in the Baltimore police department, last year.
His late wife Pam Van Sant and their two children survive him.
“I’m just devastated,” McPherson said in an interview with People of Williams on Monday. “He was the sweetest guy.” He was really gifted.”
“He was a performer’s performer.” The film industry adored him. “He’s been the beating heart of Hollywood since the late ’70s,” he continued.
In 2020, Williams appeared in a Netflix “Acting Lessons” video, saying, “The one thing I would say to younger actors is, be concerned with what you’re doing, not how you’re doing.”You’ll be a lot more comfortable, and I believe, authentic, if you’re extremely focused on what you have to say, or what you’re trying to tell the other person, or what you’re sharing with the audience.”
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