Smallville actor Chris Gauthier dead at 48

Canadian actor Chris Gauthier, best known for his roles in Once Upon a Time, Eureka, and Smallville, has died at the age of 48, representatives confirmed.

TriStar Appearances’ Chad Colvin posted tribute in a statement to Facebook on Sunday, Feb. 25.

Colvin wrote that when Gauthier’s wife “reached out to me yesterday with the news, I wept tears of disbelief for hours. It’s taken me til now to fully mentally and emotionally steel myself to write this.” 

Tristar Appearances/Event Horizon Talent later confirmed the news to Fox News Digital in a statement, writing Gauthier passed away on Friday morning, Feb. 23. 

A cause of death was not announced but his management said “he died from an unspecified short illness.” 

Gauthier has over 100 acting credits to his name, according to IMDb. Among the most notable include the character Smee in the hit series, Once Upon a Time, and Vincent in Eureka. 

“Chris was the literal textbook definition of a character actor,” Colvin wrote in tribute. 

“You may not have known his name but you knew his face, you knew his voice, and you knew that if he was onscreen, you were in for a helluva ride. 

“Whether he was standing toe-to-toe against Clark Kent on Smallville as the Toyman, tormenting Dean on Supernatural, on deck with Hook as Smee in Once Upon A Time or in guest roles in the numerous productions he was in, he ALWAYS gave it his all when the camera was rolling.” 

Gauthier’s Once Upon a Time co-star, Colin O’Donoghue, shared a photo on Instagram of the pair filming the series along with his own tribute: “Rest in Peace Chris! Heartbroken! My love and thoughts go out to Erin and the boys! You will be missed brother! You were the real captain!!” 

Gauthier is survived by his wife and children.