T.K. Carter, a comedian and actor whose breakout role came in the 1982 sci-fi horror film “The Thing,” has passed away. He was 69.
TMZ first reported the news.
Carter was found dead in his California home on Friday (Jan. 9), and authorities believe no foul play is suspected.
A character actor through and through who could do comedy and more, Carter first gained attention for guest roles on Black sitcoms in the late 1970s, including “Good Times” and “The Jeffersons.” He caught his big break in “The Thing,” working alongside Kurt Russell and Keith David as “Nauls,” the cook on a ship stranded in Antarctica that is being hunted by an amorphous, extraterrestrial life form. He would then become a TV mainstay, appearing in spot roles on shows such as “Punky Brewster,” as Michael “Mikey” Fulton, “227” and more.
Those spot roles would continue into the ’90s, as he played small yet impactful roles on “A Different World” as the son of Mr. Gaines, “Moesha,” “NYPD Blue,” and more. One of his most underrated roles was playing Gary McCullough in the 2000 HBO drama “The Corner,” a precursor to one of the most beloved TV dramas of all time, “The Wire.” As McCullough, Carter portrayed the patriarch of a family swept up in the Baltimore drug trade, dealing with addiction, job loss and more.
While the role is considered one of his best works, he admitted he struggled to even land an audition. In August 2025, he appeared on the “Live From The Green Room” podcast and said ,”God gave him the role.”
“They finally gave me an audition to play Glen Plummer’s role, but I didn’t want it,” Carter told Tony Rock & Co. “But I was all or nothing. Tell them, ‘I am Gary. I am that guy!’ This role is me! One thing Eddie Murphy said was, ‘That boy got chops.’ They ain’t saying it just to say it.”
Ultimately, he landed the role after the stars aligned and he was put in front of a manager who convinced the casting director for the show.
In later years, he starred as Herbert Brown, Bobby Brown’s father for “The Bobby Brown Story” on BET.
May he rest in peace.
