Scott Derrickson says that the “Wire” alum “cried with regret” during their last interaction.

James Ransone’s Black Phone director writes moving tribute to late actor after he’s ‘ignored’ by Oscars ‘In Memoriam’

Scott Derrickson says that the "Wire" alum "cried with regret" during their last interaction.

By Derek Lawrence

Derek Lawrence

Derek Lawrence is a former associate editor at **. He left EW in 2022.

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March 18, 2026 4:25 p.m. ET

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Director Scott Derrickson; actor James Ransone. Credit:

Gilbert Flores/Variety/Penske Media via Getty; Jon Kopaloff/Getty

In the wake of James Ransone being "ignored" by the Oscars "In Memoriam," *Doctor Strange* director Scott Derrickson is paying tribute to his late friend and sharing their heartbreaking final moments together.

While Ransone was best known for his television work, particularly his unforgettable performance as the live wire Ziggy Sobotka on season 2 of *The Wire*, Ransone appeared in films from Spike Lee, Sean Baker, and John Waters, as well as five Derrickson movies: *Sinister*, *Sinister 2*, *The Black Phone*, *Black Phone 2*, and his segment of the horror anthology *V/H/S/85*.

"The Oscars In Memoriam ignored him but I cannot," Derrickson tweeted on Tuesday. "He was my friend. I put him in five films. In early January I buried James 'PJ' Ransone after he committed suicide… He was a complex, funny, talented, and undeniably reckless person. He was wildly alive and deeply loved."

James Ransone as Max in 'Black Phone.'.

Universal Pictures

Ransone died by suicide in December. He left behind a wife and two children. Ransone had long been outspoken about his physical and mental health issues, between past drug addiction and the alleged abuse he experienced as a child. (After his death, a women shared that Ransone saved her from a sexual assault attack in 2006.)

James Ransone, star of 'The Wire' and 'Sinister,' dies at 46

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On social media, Ransone had often proven to be volatile and controversial, but Derrickson insists that the *It Chapter II *actor realized the pain that he might have caused.

"I know he said some infuriating things online, but the last time I saw him, he cried with regret for all of that," Derrickson revealed. “'I didn’t mean to hurt anyone’s feelings,' he said. Please don’t trash him here. He is dearly missed."

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