Stephen Hibbert, the actor best known for playing the Gimp in Pulp Fiction, has died at the age of 68. His children confirmed that he died on March 2 in Denver, Colorado. The family said the cause was a heart attack, though an official autopsy report is still pending.
From the Writer’s Room to the Pawn Shop Basement
The actor played the Gimp in Quentin Tarantino’s crime film, which starred John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, and Uma Thurman. The character never had any lines in the film. He did not have a face either. He simply wore a leather bodysuit and had a rather unusual presence in the basement of a pawn shop.
The scene also featured another deceased actor, Peter Greene, who played Zed alongside Stephen Hibbert’s character. He died in December 2025. Many fans have been rewatching the film and discussing the scene with the character in the pawn shop’s basement. Acting was a relatively minor component of Hibbert’s career. Writing was the dominant force throughout the bulk of Hibbert’s career.
The 1980s. The 1980s saw Hibbert working on television comedy. The writers’ room was full of ideas, and they were flowing quickly. Hibbert was a part of Late Night with David Letterman, writing for more than 250 episodes during the show’s early years. Offbeat comedy was the name of the game, and the odd sketches were a hallmark of the time.
In the 1990s, Hibbert continued to write for television. The animated series Animaniacs was a part of Hibbert’s portfolio. Another television series, Boy Meets World, for which Hibbert served as story editor. The change in tone reflected the shift in the target audience.
Film work was a result of a partnership. The 1994 film It’s Pat was a comedy that Hibbert co-wrote with his then-wife, Julia Sweeney. Sweeney also played the role of Raquel, the junkyard owner’s daughter, in the film Pulp Fiction. The circle was small, and the connection was a coincidence.