20 Star Trek Actors Who Died In 2021

5. Willie Garson - Riga

Star Trek Riga
CBS

Garson appeared as Riga, the would-be co-conspirator with Tom Paris, in the Voyager episode Thirty Days. Garson had a busy career in both SciFi and mainstream television, though is perhaps best known for his role as Stanford Blatch on HBO's Sex And The City.

Earlier in his career, he appeared in two episodes of Quantum Leap, along with Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell. In one of these episodes, he portrayed Lee Harvey Oswald. He would also appear in Buffy The Vampire Slayer, The X-Files, Twin Peaks, and Stargate SG-1 as the eccentric alien, Martin Lloyd.

He appeared in three Farrelly Brothers films - Kingpin, There's Something About Mary, and Fever Pitch. He appeared in both Sex And The City film adaptations, along with roles in Freaky Friday, Being John Malkovich, and Jackass 2.

He kept his sexuality a secret for years, for fear that his heterosexuality would make his performance as Blatch, an openly gay man, on Sex And The City offensive to gay people.

Garson died on September 21, 2021, at 59 years of age, from pancreatic cancer.

In this post: 
Star Trek
 
Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"