Bruiser in ‘Ocean’s 11’ was 65
Scott L. Schwartz, a former professional wrestler turned movie actor who made his mark playing the tough Bruiser in Steven Soderbergh’s “Ocean’s” heist trilogy, died on Nov. 26, 2024, at his home in Covington, La. of congestive heart failure. 65.
Schwartz’s death was confirmed by a representative.
“Those who know Scott personally associated him with being a fun-loving person, so full of life, a strong loving person, a foodie and a travel enthusiast,” reads a statement from his rep. “Scott truly loved life and everyone he met along the way. When he wasn’t acting, wrestling or telling jokes, he spent his time visiting children with cancer in children’s hospitals.
Aside from the eleven members of the heist team and their rival Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), Schwartz’s Bruiser is the only other character to appear in “Ocean’s Eleven,” “Ocean’s Twelve” and “Ocean’s Thirteen.” In the 2001 original, George Clooney’s Danny Ocean hires Schwartz’s character to fake beat him up during the group’s heist.
But Schwartz appeared in more than 100 other productions during his acting career, working as a stuntman and playing the heavy in comedic contexts, such as Jay Leno’s “Tonight Show,” and in action programming. Some titles include ‘The Scorpion King’, ‘Spider-Man’, ‘Castle’, ‘Epic Movie’, ‘Starsky & Hutch’ and ‘Fun With Dick and Jane’. He wrote, directed and acted in the 2010 feature film “Changing Hands,” which starred his “Ocean’s” collaborator Eddie Jemison.
Born March 19, 1959, in Philadelphia, Schwartz excelled as a high school athlete with his 6-foot-4 frame. He attended Temple University before training as a professional wrestler, debuting in 1979 as Giant David. At another time he was also called ‘The Israeli Commando’ in the ring.
Schwartz is survived by his wife, Misty; his children, Angela and Adam; his mother-in-law, Brenda; cousins, Sherry and Duwayne; his aunt, Penni, and her immediate family, Holli, Todd, Howard and several others.
