Missing Casino Royal Actor Paul Bhattacharjee Found Dead

Body of English thesp, who appeared in Daniel Craig's first go-round as James Bond as well as a number of successful U.K. TV series, discovered at cliffs in East Sussex, England

By Josh Grossberg Jul 18, 2013 12:33 PMTags
Paul BhattacharjeeDave M. Benett/Getty Images

Paul Bhattacharjee, the British actor who had roles in Casino Royale and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel as well as the British soap EastEnders, has been found dead, according to the BBC.

The 53-year-old Bhattacharjee had gone missing on July 10 after he was spotted leaving the Royal Court theater in London's Sloane Square, where he was slated to appear in the play Talk Show.

After an intensive search, authorities in Seaford, East Sussex, discovered his body at Splash Point cliffs two days later and contacted London's Metropolitan police on Wednesday.

So far, investigators are not treating his death as suspicious, and next of kin have been notified.

His family and friends appealed for his return while his 24-year-old son, Rahul Bhattacharjee-Prashar, told the Evening Standard Battacharjee's disappearance was "completely out of character".

Fellow thesp Parminder Nagra of Bend It Like Beckham and ER fame subsequently mourned his passing on Twitter.

"Very sad to hear the news about Paul Bhattacharjee. My thoughts are with his loved ones," she tweeted.

Among Bhattacharjee's other notable credits were a slew of U.K. TV series including Bedtime, Waking the Dead, Identity and Any Human Heart.