Chucky in 1988’s Child’s Play (left); Ed Gale in 2012. Credit :

United Artists/Kobal/Shutterstock; Albert L. Ortega/Getty

• Ed Gale, an actor who was best known as the man who physically performed as Chucky in the first two Child’s Play movies, has died at age 61
• Gale’s niece Kayse Gale announced his death as “a sudden passing” in a Tuesday, May 27 Facebook post, while TMZ reported that the actor died in hospice in Los Angeles
• “He had one hell of a laugh, and he will be missed,” Gale’s niece wrote on Facebook

Ed Gale, the actor best known as the man who physically performed as slasher villain Chucky in the Child’s Play movies, has died. He was 61.

TMZ was the first to report news of Gale’s death on Wednesday, May 28; the outlet reported that Gale died in hospice in Los Angeles, citing a source who was with the actor when he died. Gale’s niece Kayse Gale announced Ed’s death in a Facebook post she shared on Tuesday, May 27, in which she described the actor’s death as “a sudden passing.” A cause of death was not immediately provided.

“Ed Gale has taken his final bow and is now headlining in the afterlife,” Kayse wrote in her post, recalling that her uncle “hitched a ride to California when he was twenty years old, with $41 and a dream, and he never looked back.” 

“He lit up the silver screens in cult classic films like Howard the Duck and Chopper Chicks in Zombie Town, earning himself some serious street cred at every con he attended. Which he never stopped bragging about. Ever,” Kayse wrote in her post. “Over the course of his career he appeared in over 130 movies, TV shows, and commercials. With this wide ranging body of work, he leaves behind legacy full of questionable lighting and amazing one-liners. Ed’s favorite role was that of the ‘fun uncle.’ His love language was sharing his love of the entertainment industry and the magic of Hollywood with his nieces.”

A representative for Gale did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Ed Gale on June 12, 2009. Michael Tullberg/Getty

“Ed loved 7 eleven hotdogs with disgusting amounts of ketchup. He enjoyed reminiscing about his glory days DJing at the Plainwell roller rink. He hated Bill Maher for no good reason,” Gale’s niece Kayse added in her Facebook post. “He delighted in the slow build up of telling a good story, and cheating at cribbage. He had one hell of a laugh, and he will be missed. Rest in love you cranky b—— 💕 Final arrangements are pending.”

Gale made his film debut in 1986 when he was one of multiple actors to physically portray the title character in the 1986 movie Howard the Duck; he also appeared in the spoof comedy Spaceballs just before he stepped into costume to play the villainous Chucky, a doll possessed by a serial killer, in 1988’s original Child’s Play and the 1990 sequel.

“Ed was a pleasure to work with on Child’s Play and played an important role in helping me sell the action of Chucky and thus a reason to fear Chucky,” filmmaker Tom Holland, who directed the original Child’s Play movie, tells PEOPLE in a statement. “Ed was always ready to go when I called action.”

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While actor Brad Dourif voiced Chucky in a number of the Child’s Play movies, Gale physically portrayed the character in the two original films and in 1998’s Bride of Chucky.

The actor also appeared in movies like Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, O Brother, Where Art Thou? and The Polar Express, among others. Gale did not appear in any movies or television series between 2014 and 2020; he last appeared in a movie role in 2020’s Pandemonic. 

Ed Gale on Oct. 31, 2021. Bobby Bank/Getty

Gale became the center of a Los Angeles police investigation in April 2023 when he admitted to a group called Creep Catchers Unit that he had solicited a number of potential minors for sex, as outlets like the Los Angeles Times and L.A. Weekly reported at the time. A spokesperson for the L.A. County District Attorney’s office told PEOPLE May 28 that a case was referred to the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office in September 2023 for a possible misdemeanor filing.