Louise Fletcher, who played Nurse Ratched in 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest', dies aged 88
Louise Fletcher, famous for her role as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, has died aged 88.
In a statement shared with Deadline, Fletcher’s family revealed that she died in her sleep at her home in Montdurausse, France.
After being born in Birmingham, Alabama, Fletcher’s first roles came in TV Westerns including Lawman and Maverick in the 1950s.
Her most famous role came in the 1975 film adaptation of , which saw her star as Nurse Ratched alongside Jack Nicholson.
For the role, she won an Academy Award, a BAFTA and a Golden Globe, becoming only the third woman to do so.
In her acceptance speech at the Oscars, she gave a nod to her deaf parents by giving the speech in sign language. Watch that below.
In 2020, a new show called Ratched launched on Netflix, starring Sarah Paulson as Fletcher’s character Nurse Ratched.
Fletcher herself followed her role in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest with appearances in a number of films including Exorcist II: The Heretic, The Cheap Detective and The Lady in Red.
She also gave a host of TV performances in her latter career, including Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Picket Fences and Joan of Arcadia, as well as appearing as Frank Gallagher’s mother in Shameless.
Fletcher’s final role came in 2017 with an appearance on Netflix series Girlboss.