Actor James Ransone, known for his roles as Ziggy Sobotka in “The Wire” and Eddie Kaspbrak in “It: Chapter 2,” died Friday of hanging, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office. He was 46 years old.
Ransone appeared in episode 12 of Season 2 of The Wire as Chester “Ziggy” Sabotka, a longshoreman turned petty criminal. Throughout the process, Ziggy is easily pushed aside by other low-level criminals and fellow cargo inspectors. After receiving too many insults, Ziggy becomes enraged and beats up his partner. Horrified by his actions, he waited for the police to arrive at the scene and confessed to the murder. His last appearance on the show is in the season 2 finale, where he is seen serving his sentence in prison.
Five years later, Ransone co-starred with Alexander Skarsgård in Generation Kill. He played a real-life Marine Corporal. Josh Ray Person appeared in all seven episodes of the HBO miniseries, which follows a Rolling Stone reporter assigned to the 1st Reconnaissance Marines.
In 2019, Ranson played an older version of Eddie Kaspbrak, a meek Derry-born limousine driver, in IT: Chapter 2. His other recent film credits include “Black Phone 2,” “V/H/S/85,” “Small Engine Repair,” and “What We Found.”
His recent television credits include “Poker Face,” “Seal Team,” “50 States of Terror” and “The First.”
Ranson was born in 1979 in Baltimore. From 1993 to 1997, she attended Carver Arts and Technology Center in Towson, Maryland. Their breakthrough came in 2002 when they co-starred in the teen drama “Ken Park.” He landed a role on “The Wire” a year later.
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.
