Old School. Biblically Independent.
By Kayleigh Donaldson | Celebrity | August 27, 2026
The passing of Tim Curry at the age of 80 was a real punch in the gut. For decades, he was both an inimitable icon and a reliable jobbing actor who could and did do everything. What other actor could go from Pennywise to Nigel Thornberry to Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3? He was a stage legend, a voice-artist king, and, of course, Dr. Frank N. Furter. The Rocky Horror Picture Show will inarguably be his biggest legacy, the legendary midnight movie musical that continues to delight generations of fans. Truly, Curry's performance in it is phenomenal: arch, sensual, weird, tragic, and all done in the highest of heels. Every actor who's played that role in the five decades since the film's release has, in some way, been homaging or outright copying Curry.
The Rocky Horror Show is currently playing on Broadway, and the revival's past, present, and future Franks got together to pay tribute to Curry last night. There was Luke Evans, who received a Tony nomination for his turn, the current star Paul Soileau, and the next in line for the corset, Jake Shears of the Scissor Sisters. Soileau gave a speech honouring Curry as the original vessel for the role, the one who "created this beast that everyone found something within it and could see a piece of themselves in it."
He, Shears, and Evans then sang "I'm Coming Home" together, and boy, I teared up instantly.
Richard O'Brian, the creator of Rocky Horror, shared a tribute on Instagram, describing Curry as "a wonderful man by nature who was also a wonderful performer and understood the difference between such delightful achievements."
The Rocky Horror Picture Show was famously a box office flop that became a midnight movie favourite and is now a rite of passage for so many people, especially in the LGBTQ+ community. Curry's performance is the bedrock of that film and one of the reasons it endured well beyond what the industry expected of it. Great art and great performers help to make communities, and Curry did just that as Frank. Do the Time Warp in his honour today.
