In the television series Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, Mark Margolis (/mrols/, mar-GOH-liss; November 26, 1939 – August 3, 2023) is best known for playing Hector Salamanca. In 2012, his work on the television series Breaking Bad earned him an Emmy nomination.
Table of Contents
Who is Mark Margolis? and Everything you need to know
He frequently performed in Darren Aronofsky’s films, making appearances in the director’s first six films, starting with Pi (1998). He was also well-known for his roles as Antonio Nappa in Oz and Alberto “The Shadow” in Scarface. In his teen years, he began performing.
Early life
In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Margolis was born. He is the son of Fanya (née Fried) and Isidore Margolis. He came from a Jewish family at birth.
Prior to leaving Temple University and relocating to New York City, Margolis attended there for a brief period of time. He was studying at the Actors Studio with Stella Adler at the age of 19. Later, Lee Strasberg and Barbara Loden tutored him as well.
RELATED: Who is Bianca Censori..? All You Need to Know about Kanye West’s New Wife
Career
Margolis began acting in different plays after receiving tuition from Adler. He performed in the 1962 Broadway production of Infidel Caesar, which was based on Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. The play never had a formal opening and was abandoned during previews. He then started Blue Dome, a travelling theatre company that put on several plays. Later, Margolis contributed to more than 50 Off-Broadway productions.
Margolis made his screen debut in 1976’s The Opening of Misty Beethoven as a passenger. Margolis was renowned for his supporting performances in the films of Darren Aronofsky, including (1998), Requiem for a Dream (2000), The Fountain (2006), The Wrestler (2008), Black Swan (2010), and Noah (2014). He was also well-known for his parts in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994) and Scarface (1983).
Margolis portrayed Dr. Nel Apgar in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, a science fiction television programme, in 1990. Margolis performed the role of Helmut Dieter in the soap opera Santa Barbara in 1991. The Equaliser, Quantum Leap, Oz, Law & Order, Crossing Jordan, Californication, Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul were just a few of the TV shows he appeared in repeatedly. He played Felix Faust in the “Quid Pro Quo” episode of Constantine from January 2015. Margolis was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his work in Breaking Bad.
Later, in the spinoff series Better Call Saul, he would play the same character once more.
Margolis continued to perform on stage while later in his career concentrating on television and film. In a local performance of Imagining Madoff in 2010, he played Bernie Madoff. He played Gus in Tony Kushner’s The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures during the Berkeley Repertory Theater’s 2014 season. As Gottfried Swetts in A Bright Room Called Day in 2019, he appeared in another Kushner drama.
Personal life and death
On June 3, 1962, Margolis wed Jacqueline Margolis (née Petcove). They had a son, actor Morgan H. Margolis, and three grandchildren.
After a brief illness, Margolis passed away on August 3, 2023, at the age of 83, at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.
