José Mojica Marins Has Passed Away

A legendary, influential creative force for decades in the horror genre, filmmaker and actor José Mojica Marins has passed away at the age of 83.

The news of José Mojica Marins' passing was reported by multiple outlets, including the Associated Press. According to the AP, Marins "had been hospitalized with pneumonia for 20 days," and his daughter confirmed the sad news that he passed away on February 19th.

In an acting and directing career that spanned six decades, Marins is perhaps most well-known for playing the beloved, iconic, and altogether creepy character Coffin Joe, aka Zé do Caixão, the boogeyman of Brazilian cinema. Coffin Joe was the central character in what is known as the "Coffin Joe Trilogy" (At Midnight I'll Take Your Soul, This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse, and Embodiment of Evil) and is also featured in films such as 1974's The Bloody Exorcism of Coffin Joe, which starred José Mojica Marins as both himself and the titular character.

A prolific creative force both behind and in front of the camera, Marins was involved as a director in more than 40 films and acted in more than 60 projects (according to IMDb).

Although he may have passed away, his contributions to horror cinema will live on to inspire (and scare) generations to come, and our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time.