Mary Beth Hurt, the acclaimed actress known for her memorable performances in the 1980s, died on Saturday, March 28, at the age of 78. She had been courageously fighting Alzheimer’s disease for a decade before her passing.
The announcement of her death was made by her daughter, Molly Schrader, through an Instagram post on Sunday. Mary’s husband, the writer-director Paul Schrader, also confirmed her passing. Molly shared a heartfelt message alongside a childhood photo of herself with her mother, expressing both grief and solace. She wrote that despite the sorrow, there was comfort in knowing her mother was no longer in pain and had been reunited in peace with her sisters.
Mary Beth Hurt was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2015, a condition she battled for ten years. She was widely recognized for her work on stage and in films during the 1980s, including notable appearances in Oscar-nominated movies such as Six Degrees of Separation and The World Garp. In a 2010 interview with Theatrelife.com, she reflected on her career, stating that she felt she was “born an actress.”
