Geno Silva, shotgun-wielding hitman from iconic Scarface scene, dies at 72

Geno Silva, the actor best remembered for playing Tony Montana's killer in Scarface, has died. He was 72.

The actor died May 9 at home in Los Angeles of complications resulting from frontotemporal degeneration, a form of dementia, The Hollywood Reporter was first to report.

Despite having no lines in Brian De Palma's 1983 classic, Silva still made an impression as The Skull, Alejandro Sosa's silent hitman. In the film's iconic ending, The Skull shoots down Al Pacino's Tony Montana with a shotgun blast to the back, ending the proceeding bloodbath and causing the druglord to fall dead into the fountain below.

WARNING: This clip contains violence and strong language

Silva also appeared in other high-profile features, including two Steven Spielberg films: Amistad and The Lost World: Jurassic Park, both from 1997. He was in David Lynch's 2001 movie Mulholland Drive and starred opposite Vin Diesel in F. Gary Gray's A Man Apart in 2003.

On the small screen, Silva could be seen in numerous classics, like Hill Street Blues, 227, Miami Vice, MacGyver, Days of Our Lives, Key West, and Walker, Texas Ranger. One of his last TV roles was portraying Senator Vrax in two episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise in 2005.

Born on Jan. 20, 1948, in Albuquerque, N.M., Silva was also a stage veteran and appeared with Philip Seymour Hoffman and John Ortiz in The Merchant of Venice in 1994. Five years later, he and Ortiz reunited for the off-Broadway play Sueño.

On May 11, Ortiz shared a long tribute to Silva on Facebook. The actor called him a "friend. A father figure. An artistic warrior brother. A confidante. A lover of life."

"He was generous, passionate, bold, strong, intelligent, joyful with a regally imposing physical presence which never shut down his magnetic curiosity or spirituality. He was proud of his roots, and even prouder of his friends and family," the Ad Astra actor continued.

Ortiz ended the post, which featured numerous photos of the two together, by writing, "Thank you, Geno, you giant of a man. Rest In Power."

Silva is survived by his wife, a daughter, and two grandchildren.

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