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Philip Seymour Hoffman found dead

Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on Sunday afternoon.

Hoffman died of an apparent drug overdose, with a hypodermic needle still in his arm, a New York city police source said.

Hoffman's friend, screenwriter David Bar Katz, called 911 after he and a female friend found Hoffman in his underwear on a bathroom floor, the New York Post reported.

The pair had gone to check on Hoffman after he failed to collect his three children from the house of girlfriend Mimi O’Donnell, the Post's sources said.

Philip Seymour Hoffman and Mimi O'Donnell with their children, Cooper Hoffman, Willa Hoffman, Tallulah Hoffman on December 16, 2013. Photo: Getty.
Philip Seymour Hoffman and Mimi O'Donnell with their children, Cooper Hoffman, Willa Hoffman, Tallulah Hoffman on December 16, 2013. Photo: Getty.

Police reportedly found seven empty glassine envelopes in the apartment and a charred spoon in the kitchen sink.

A police source confirmed Hoffman was found dead after a 911 call from a friend.

Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman won a Best Actor Oscar for the 2005 film <i>Capote</i>. Photo: Getty.
Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman won a Best Actor Oscar for the 2005 film Capote. Photo: Getty.

His family has released a statement.

"We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Phil and appreciate the outpouring of love and support we have received from everyone," the statement read.

"This is a tragic and sudden loss and we ask that you respect our privacy during this time of grieving. Please keep Phil in your thoughts and prayers.”



Hoffman, 46, had admitted to struggling with drug addiction in the past and spent 10 days in rehab for heroin use in May last year.

He had kicked the heroin habit for 23 years but reportedly fell back into the habit with a prescription pill addiction that escalated to heroin use.

Philip Seymour Hoffman (right) and partner Mimi O'Donnell at the 81st Annual Academy Awards on February 22, 2009. Photo: Getty.
Philip Seymour Hoffman (right) and partner Mimi O'Donnell at the 81st Annual Academy Awards on February 22, 2009. Photo: Getty.

In a 2006 interview with CBS' "60 Minutes," Hoffman discussed his drug use after graduating from New York University's drama school.

"It was all that [drugs and alcohol], yeah, it was anything I could get my hands on... I liked it all," Hoffman said. Eventually, he chose to seek treatment. "I went [to rehab], I got sober when I was 22 years old. You get panicked... and I got panicked for my life. It really was just that."

He also revealed that his drug habit was life threatening.

"I have so much empathy for these young actors that are 19 and all of a sudden they're beautiful and famous and rich. I'm like, 'Oh my God. I'd be dead.' You know what I mean? I'd be 19, beautiful, famous and rich. That would be it. I think back at that time. I think if I had the money, that kind of money and stuff. So, yeah [I would have died]."

Born in upstate New York near Rochester, Hoffman won the best actor Oscar for the 2005 biographical film Capote, in which he played writer Truman Capote. He also received three Academy Award nominations as best supporting actor, for The Master in 2013, Doubt in 2009 and Charlie Wilson's War in 2008.

After more than a dozen earlier roles, Hoffman burst onto the film scene in 1997's Boogie Nights, in which he played a lovelorn gay man, in the movie about the porn industry that helped make Mark Wahlberg a star.

Hoffman as Truman Capote in the 2005 film <i>Capote</i>, for which he won his Oscar. Photo: Supplied.
Hoffman as Truman Capote in the 2005 film Capote, for which he won his Oscar. Photo: Supplied.

INTENSE ROLES

Hoffman appeared in blockbusters such as Twister and The Hunger Games series. But he was more often associated with the independent film world for his intense portrayals of often disturbing and complex characters in such films as Happiness, in which he played an obscene phone caller, and Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.

In the latter, he played a son who schemes to rob his parents' jewelry store, resulting in their deaths. But Hoffman could also play nice, as in Magnolia, in which he played the role of an angelic nurse.

Other noteworthy films included Moneyball, The Savages, Cold Mountain and Scent of a Woman, one of his earliest films, for which Al Pacino won an Oscar.

Hoffman in the 2012 movie, <i>The Master</i>. Photo: AP.
Hoffman in the 2012 movie, The Master. Photo: AP.

Hoffman also frequently appeared on Broadway, garnering Tony award nominations for Death of a Salesman, Long Day's Journey Into Night and True West.

In a sombre note, Hoffman was the victim of a death hoax earlier this week. However, at the time, his rep confirmed that he was alive and well.

Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman poses with his award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture-Drama for <i>Capote</i> at the 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards. Photo: Reuters.
Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman poses with his award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture-Drama for Capote at the 63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards. Photo: Reuters.

He is survived by his partner, Mimi O'Donnell, and their three children, Cooper Alexander, 10, Tallula, 7, and Willa, 5.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said via Twitter: "Saddened by Philip Seymour Hoffman's tragic and untimely passing. Today New York mourns the loss of one of stage and screen's greats."