Isiah Whitlock Jr., Actor In ‘The Wire’ And ‘Veep,’ Dies At Age 71

Actor Isiah Whitlock Jr., best known for appearing in “The Wire” and “Veep,” has died at the age of 71. 

The Hollywood mainstay passed away peacefully at home following a brief illness, per his manager Brian Liebman. 

“It is with tremendous sadness that I share the passing of my dear friend and client Isiah Whitlock Jr. If you knew him — you loved him,” Liebman posted on Instagram. “A brilliant actor and even better person. May his memory forever be a blessing. Our hearts are so broken. He will be very, very missed.” 

Whitlock was born in South Bend, Indiana. He got into acting by joining the San Francisco American Conservatory Theater after graduating from college. 

His first important role was on the CBS show “Cagney & Lacey” in 1987. Whitlock spent more than 30 years in Hollywood, appearing in major television franchises, including “Law & Order,” per Deadline.

He’s best known for playing the corrupt state senator R. Clayton “Clay” Davis on HBO’s “The Wire.” He also took on the role of George Maddox, U.S. Secretary of Defense, on the popular HBO Max political comedy series, “Veep” (2012-2019). 

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The actor had roles in several Spike Lee movies, including “25th Hour” (2002), “She Hate Me” (2004), “Red Hook Summer” (2012), “Chi-Raq” (2015), “BlacKkKlansman” (2018), and “Da 5 Bloods” (2020). 

It was in “25th Hour” that Whitlock’s popular catchphrase, an elongated pronunciation of the word “sh**” that sounds like, “sheeeeeeeeit,” was born. 

Whitlock said hearing fans mimic his performance made him happy.

“I did it there, and I did it in ‘She Hate Me,’” the actor said during a 2008 interview. “But then, when I got on to ‘The Wire,’ I saw a couple of opportunities where I could do it, and I did. And they started writing it in.”

“I was in, I think, Grand Central Station and far away I heard someone say it and they’d be kind of smiling. I’m glad people enjoy it,” he added.

Whitlock’s last role was on the Netflix series “The Residence,” which debuted in March of this year. He has a voice role in the upcoming Pixar film “Hoppers.”