Carel Struycken () is a Dutch actor. He is known for playing the Giant/Fireman in the television series Twin Peaks (1990–1991, 2017), the occasional guest role of Mr. Homn in Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1992), and the household butler Lurch in the Addams Family films of 1991, 1993 and 1998. He also appeared in the films Men in Black (1997), Gerald's Game (2017) and Doctor Sleep (2019).
Early life Struycken was born in The Hague. When he was 4 years old, his family moved to Curaçao in the Netherlands Antilles. There, at age 15, he composed several Caribbean waltzes. At 16, he returned to his home country, where he finished secondary school. He graduated from the directing program at the film school in Amsterdam. After that, he spent a year at the American Film Institute, in Los Angeles.
Career
In 1978, Struycken was discovered as an actor at the corner of Hollywood and Vine in Los Angeles by a woman who had abandoned her car in the middle of the street, calling after him: "We need you for a movie!".Carel Struycken tells the anecdote about his discovery as an actor in an interview on the daily Dutch TV show De Wereld Draait Door , 2 October 2006 (at 41:08 min.) The film was Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Struycken played Terak in the 1985 TV film Ewoks: The Battle for Endor, a spin-off to the original Star Wars trilogy.
Struycken appeared as Fidel, Jack Nicholson's manservant, in the 1987 film The Witches of Eastwick. That same year, he appeared as Mr. Homn in "Haven", an episode of the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, a role he would reprise in four more episodes until 1992.
In 1991, he starred as butler Lurch in the feature film The Addams Family. He reprised the role in the 1993 sequel, Addams Family Values, and the TV film Addams Family Reunion. Director Barry Sonnenfeld also picked Struycken for a small role in Men in Black.
He portrayed the mystical guide-character "The Giant" in David Lynch and Mark Frost's hit 1990–91 ABC television series Twin Peaks. He also appears in the 2017 sequel series, Twin Peaks: The Return. He appears as the "Moonlight Man" in the 2017 film Gerald's Game and "Grandpa Flick" in Doctor Sleep, the 2019 sequel to Stephen King's The Shining.
Struycken collaborated on several projects with writer and director Rene Daalder, including the 1986 punk rock musical Population: 1, which featured Tomata du Plenty, of The Screamers, and which was released on DVD in October 2008.
Personal life
At age 20, he was diagnosed with acromegaly, which explains his tall height of 2.13 m (7 feet) and distinctive facial features.
Struycken is an avid photographer. He maintains a website devoted to his spherical panoramas and shares a photography blog with Josh Korwin.
He and his wife have two children. They reside in the Los Angeles area.
His brother Peter Struycken won the 2012 Heineken Prize for Arts of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.
In January 2025, his home was destroyed by the Eaton Fire.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1978Source for filmography: Carel Struycken, accessed on 3 October 2006Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band The BruteTarzanaMr. MonaShort film, credited as Karyl Struycken 1980 Die Laughing Gregor, The Giant Go West, Young Man Dr. Struycken Also co-screenwriter 1984 The Prey The Monster 1985 Ewoks: The Battle for Endor Terak (TV movie) 1987 The Witches of Eastwick Fidel 1988 Night of the Kickfighters Ponti 1990 Framed Jinx (TV movie) 1991 Servants of Twilight Kyle Barlow The Addams Family Lurch 1993 Journey to the Center of the Earth Dallas (TV movie) Addams Family Values Lurch 1994 Oblivion Mr. Gaunt 1995 Under the Hula Moon Clyde Out There Mr. Burke (TV movie) 1996 Oblivion 2: Backlash Mr. Gaunt 1997 Men in Black Arquillian 1998 I Woke Up Early The Day I Died The Undertaker Addams Family Reunion Lurch (TV movie) 1999 Enemy Action "Eyepatch" 2000 Tinnef Kran (Video short) 2001 The Vampire Hunters Club Host Vampire 2002 Science Fiction Strange Man Fatal Kiss The Mortician (TV movie) 2003 The War of the Starfighters (voice) 2004 Agavé J.C / Cowboy 2005 The Fallen Ones High Priest No. 1 (TV movie) 2008 Sinterklaas en het Geheim van het Grote Boek Dr. Ferdinand 2014 Trophy Heads Brother Humphrey 2016 Another Brick in the Wall Roy 2017 Gerald's Game Moonlight Man 2019 Doctor Sleep Grampa Flick
Television Year Title Role Notes 1987 Hunter Occult Store Owner Season 4, Episodes "City of Passion: Part 1'"City of Passion: Part 2" 1988 St. Elsewhere The Giant Season 6, Episode "Fairytale Theater" 1990–1991 Twin Peaks The Giant 5 episodes 1987–1992 Star Trek: The Next Generation Mr. Homn 5 episodes 1994 Babylon 5 Trader Season 2, Episode "Soul Mates" 1996 Star Trek: Voyager Spectre Season 2, Episode "The Thaw" 2002 Charmed Tall Man Season 4, Episode "Womb Raider" 2006 My Name Is Earl Paul Season 2, Episode "Sticks & Stones" 2010 Cold Case Lester "Gargantuan" Smith Season 7, Episode 14 "Metamorphisis" 2014 The Blacklist Matthew Kincaid Season 2, Episode 6 "The Mombasa Cartel (No. 114)" 2017 Twin Peaks: The Return The Fireman 4 episodes
Music videos 1983 "Mexican Radio" by Wall of Voodoo 1996 "A.D.I.D.A.S." by Korn
References
Further reading Carel Struycken: Leaning Toward the Paleolithic, by Christopher Nyerges, The Backwoodsman Magazine, July/August 2013, Vol.34 No. 4, published by Backwoodsman Magazine, Fulton, Texas. Pages 26–27
External links Carel Struycken Website