Anthony Head, best known for his roles in “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Ted Lasso,” has died. He was 72.
The British actor died “peacefully of complications due to pneumonia,” his daughters, actresses Emily and Daisy Head, said in a statement on Friday.
“It is with heavy hearts that we announce the death of our extraordinary father, Anthony Head,” the statement began.
Emily and Daisy called it “an honor and a privilege” to be Anthony’s daughters.
“We know how dearly he will be missed by friends, colleagues, and fans of the shows he was in – he loved his job very much, and he always considered himself incredibly lucky, to have been able to work alongside such exceptionally talented people, in such wonderful productions, across a career that spanned several decades,” the pair added.
The sisters said that, while their “grief is far greater than the hole he has left behind,” they know their dad’s “legacy will live on” thanks to the popular TV shows he was in.
“How lucky we are to know we are able to watch him doing what he loved, even when he is no longer with us,” they added.
Emily and Daisy ended their statement by asking for their privacy to be “respected at this difficult time.”
Head’s passing comes less than six months after his longtime partner, Sarah Fisher, with whom he shared his two daughters, died at age 61.
In a Dec. 29, 2025 Facebook post, Emily and Daisy announced their mom’s death, saying it “came with very little warning” and was “immensely shocking to us all.”
“We know how profoundly she has impacted the lives of so many, and we couldn’t be more proud of the legacy she is leaving behind,” Emily and Daisy wrote. “We only wish she’d had more time to share her knowledge and brilliance with us, and the world.”
They said in their statement that Fisher “didn’t want a funeral.”
Head and Fisher were together from 1982 until her death. In 2018, he told the Daily Telegraph that she never wanted to get married despite their decades-long relationship.
“She just isn’t interested. She says f–k off and then runs off to throw up,” he said at the time.
Head added, “I just can’t imagine my life without Sarah. And I definitely wouldn’t want to.”
Head made his final red carpet appearance at the “Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves” UK premiere on March 23, 2023.
The late star was best known for playing Rupert Giles in all seven seasons of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” from 1997 to 2003.
Giles is a Watcher tasked with mentoring and training Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar), which leads to them forming a father-daughter-like relationship.
Head’s co-stars, Michelle Trachtenberg and Nicholas Brendon, both died within the last two years.
Trachtenberg, who played Buffy’s sister, Dawn Summers, died in February 2025 due to complications of diabetes mellitus. She was 39.
Brendon, who played Buffy’s close pal Xander Harris, died on March 20 at age 54. His cause of death was revealed to be atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
In 2020, Head told The Post he was continuing to feel the impact of “Buffy” from fans.
“It does span the generations. I still don’t understand how it never came away with any Emmys, or any of those awards,” he said. “People [tell me] how much it meant to them at the time they were growing up, how it resonated, and bless them.”
Head said fans told him they considered Giles their own “father figure that was missing in their lives for various reasons.”
“I think that’s part of its longevity,” the British actor added. “It hit home. It’s quite remarkable.”
Head also played Rupert Mannion, owner of AFC Richmond and ex-husband of Hannah Waddingham’s Rebecca Welton, in the first three seasons of Apple TV’s hit comedy “Ted Lasso.”
At the end of the series, Rupert splits from his third wife, Bex (Keeley Hazell), and gets fired as owner of his second soccer team, West Ham United.
In 2023, Head called his character a “narcissist” while telling Vulture he loved playing the villain of “Ted Lasso.”
In an interview with Awards Radar, Head said it was “an absolute dream” to work closely with Waddingham, 51.
“I’ve been very fortunate in my career to work with some wonderful actors, and she is extraordinary,” he gushed.
Head, who was born in Camden Town, England, studied acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. One of his earliest roles was in the 1978 musical “Godspell.”
He rose to fame in the 1980s thanks to the Gold Blend couple TV ads for Nescafé, which later led to him being cast in “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”
Head’s other notable TV roles were in the British sketch comedy show “Little Britain” and the fantasy drama series “Merlin.” He appeared in a Season 2 episode of “Bridgerton” in 2022.
The late actor also provided his voice for the role of Herc Shipwright in BBC Radio 4’s sitcom “Cabin Pressure” from 2011 to 2014.
