'Full Monty,' 'Shakespeare in Love' actor Tom Wilkinson dead at 75

Dec. 30 (UPI) -- BAFTA-winning, Oscar-nominated actor Tom Wilkinson has died at the age of 75.

"It is with great sadness that the family of Tom Wilkinson announce that he died suddenly at home on December 30," his agent said a statement Saturday.

"His wife and family were with him. The family asks for privacy at this time."

Wilkinson was known for his roles in The Full Monty, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Shakespeare in Love, The Importance of Being Earnest and In the Bedroom.

The actor reprised his role of Gerald in the Disney+ sequel series to The Full Monty earlier this year.

In 2005, Wilkinson told UPI and a handful of other New York press that working on The Full Monty helped him see each subsequent acting challenge as easy by comparison.

The film cast Wilkinson, Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy and several other actors as unemployed men putting on a strip show to earn some cash.

Although the men are filmed from behind for the final scene, Wilkinson recalled they still had to dance nude in front of the crew and scores of extras in a club.

"There were 200 of the scariest women you've ever seen in your life -- from Sheffield!" the actor said. "And they were there for a good time! ... Their reactions to what they saw was the pay-off for that shot...

"It was one of the few occasions when the producers said, 'We're going to give you some alcohol,'" he said, admitting he felt like a "rock star" after the women "went crazy" for the dance.

"You felt somehow liberated and you thought, 'No (acting problem) will ever frighten me again,'" he added.

His other credits include Selma, John Adams, Batman Begins, Michael Clayton, The Patriot, Rush Hour, Recount, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Sense and Sensibility and The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Wilkinson is survived by his wife, actress Diana Hardcastle, and two daughters.