Chad McQueen, known for his iconic role as the bully Dutch in the Karate Kid films, died in Palm Springs, California, on Wednesday. He was 63.
“It is with a heavy heart that we announce the passing of our father Chad McQueen,” his wife Jeanie and children Chase and Madison said on social media.
“His remarkable journey as a loving father to us, along with his unwavering commitment to our mother, truly exemplified a life filled with love and dedication.
“His passion for racing not only highlighted his exceptional talent, but also served as a way to honour his father’s legacy, a testament to the values instilled in him.
“He passed his passion, knowledge and dedication down to us and we will continue not only his legacy but our grandfather’s as well.
“As a family we need to navigate this difficult time and we kindly ask for privacy as we remember and celebrate his extraordinary life.”
McQueen’s lawyer Arthur Barens confirmed to TMZ that he died of organ failure at his ranch in Palm Springs.
McQueen was the son of ‘King of Cool’ Steve McQueen, whose passion for acting and race car driving he shared and followed into.
Best known for his role as Dutch in the 1984 film The Karate Kid and its 1986 sequel The Karate Kid Part II, McQueen’s portrayal as a member of the Cobra Kai is one of the seminal moments of the 1980s pop culture.
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He went on to appear in films like Fever Pitch in 1985, New York Cop in 1993, Jimmy Hollywood in 1994, Red Line in 1995, Papertrail in 1998, Fall: The Price of Silence in 2001, and won a Telly Award for his documentary Filming at Speed.
However, it was MCQueen’s auto racing career that was much more successful. He competed in events like the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 12 Hours of Sebring, and founded McQueen Racing in 2010, which creates custom cars, motorcycles, and accessories.
“I didn’t find acting fun anymore,” McQueen told Associated Press in 2005. “So, I decided to give racing a total commitment.”
He continued to race professionally but suffered a near-fatal crash in 2006 while practising for the Daytona International Speedway’s Rolex 24 event.
He survived a broken lower leg and multiple vertebrae and rib fractures, but the crash ended his professional racing career.
McQueen went on to produce the documentaries I Am Steve McQueen and Steve McQueen: The Man & Le Mans, about his father.
He was an executive producer on the film Yucatan, in early development at Netflix from producers Robert Downey Jr and Susan Downey, according to Deadline.
Yucatan is a project that McQueen and family friend Lance Sloan, a Warner Bros executive, had been trying to get off the ground for over two decades, after they found almost 1,700 pages of notes and storyboards compiled by Steve McQueen in a trunk after his death in 1980.
The film followed a renegade salvage expert’s search for Mayan treasure in the Yucatan Peninsula, and the original storyboard showed Steve McQueen in the lead role.
Sean Kanan, who played Mike Barnes in The Karate Kid Part III and Cobra Kai, paid tribute to McQueen on social media, saying: “He made an unforgettable impression on the Karate Kid universe. Wishing his family strength and peace during this difficult time. RIP Chad.”