Mark Margolis, known for his part as drug kingpin Hector Salamanca (or Tio) in US shows Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, has passed away at the age of 83.

According to his publicist, as a result of a short illness, Margolis died at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City with his wife, Jacqueline, and his son, Morgan, at his bedside.

Margolis was born in 1939, in Philadelphia, and studied under Stella Adler upon moving to New York, where he began his on-stage career. 

The actor had roles in over 60 films, including Scarface, Ace Ventura, and The Wrestler, as he called himself a "journeyman actor".

He was able to reach the widest audience through his role as Salamanca, a resentful former drug lord in Breaking Bad, who was only able to communicate through a bell attached to his wheelchair and eventually died.

He was nominated for an Emmy in 2021 for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.

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Deadline states that the actor participated in more than 50 off-Broadway plays, such as playing Bernie Madoff in a 2010 regional production of Imagining Madoff.

In a statement, Robert Kolker, Margolis’s manager, said: “He was one of a kind. We won’t see his likes again,” adding: “He was a treasured client and a lifelong friend. I was lucky to know him.”