“Thomas Kent “TK” Carter, an actor best known for his role in John Carpenter’s classic 1982 horror movie The Thing, has died. He was 69. Carter was found dead in his Duarte, Calif., home on Friday after a 911 call was made, according to TMZ. The outlet also reported that the call came in at”, — write: www.hollywoodreporter.com
Carter was found dead in his Duarte, Calif., home on Friday after a 911 call was made, according to TMZ. The outlet also reported that the call came in at approximately 5:42 pm and no foul play was suspected. A cause of death has not yet been announced.
Born on Dec. 18, 1956, in New York City, the actor was raised in Southern California’s San Gabriel Valley. He made his acting debut in 1976 on NBC’s crime drama Police Woman.
Carter’s breakthrough role was playing roller-skating chef Nauls in The Thing opposite Kurt Russell. The following year, he was in the ABC sitcom Just Our Luck with Richard Gilliland, and from 1985-86, he played Mike Fulton in the first two seasons of NBC’s Punky Brewster. In the 1996 original Space Jam movie, he voiced the character Monstar Nawt.
Additional acting credits across film and TV included Good Times, The Waltons, The Jeffersons, 227, Good Morning, Miss Bliss, Family Matters, The Sinbad Show, Moesha, The Steve Harvey Show, The Nanny, Seems Like Old Times, Southern Comfort, Doctor Detroit, Ski Patrol and My Favorite Martian.
His most recent roles have been in the 2020 film The Way Back, starring Ben Affleck; 2022’s Fake Friends; three episodes of the Milo Ventimiglia-starrer series The Company You Keep in 2023; and five episodes of rapper Lil Dicky’s sitcom Dave that same year.
He is survived by his wife, Janet Carter.