Philip Seymour Hoffman dead at 46: 'We are devastated'

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From the Hoffman family: “We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Phil and appreciate the outpouring of love and support we have received from everyone. This is a tragic and sudden loss and we ask that you respect our privacy during this time of grieving. Please keep Phil in your thoughts and prayers.” (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times)

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@jtimberlake: Just hearing about Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Devastating. What an amazingly gifted actor. RIP (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

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@jessetyler: So increadibly sad to hear one of my favorite actors has passed. RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

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“I’m so shocked, and so sad hearing of Philip Seymour Hoffman’s death. I enjoyed playing with him on the ‘Big Lebowski.’ He was such a wonderful guy, and so damn talented, a real treasure. My thoughts and prayers are with his family.” via Facebook

FOR THE RECORD: An image posted earlier showed actor Jeff Daniels instead of Jeff Bridges. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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@aaronpaul_8: We lost one of the greats today. Philip Seymour Hoffman RIP my friend. You will be missed always and forever.

@glassofwhiskey: Philip Seymour Hoffman dies at age 46. He will be remembered as one of the finest actors of all time. I got into this business because I was inspired by this man. Looked up to him on so many different levels. You will be missed always and forever. R.I.P. my friend. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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SandraBernhard: great actor introspective brilliant original incredibly sad to hear the news about #phillipseymourhoffman (Rob Kim / Getty Images)

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@JimCarrey: Dear Philip, a beautiful beautiful soul. For the most sensitive among us the noise can be too much. Bless your heart. ;^{ (Jordan Strauss / Invision / Associated Press)

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@omarepps: Damn! RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman. Was one of the great thespians.. (Tommaso Boddi / Getty Images)

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@waynebrady: Philip Seymour Hoffman dead at 46 of drug overdose. Wow...Brilliant actor. God Bless his family. (Charley Gallay / Getty Images)

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@TheEllenShow: Philip Seymour Hoffman was a brilliant, talented man. The news this morning is shocking and sad. My heart goes out to his loved ones. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

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@jamesfrancotv: “Philip Seymour Hoffman -- he was the best of the best -- seems impossible that he’s gone.” (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

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@jeremypiven: What a gentle soul, great loss... (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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@Cary_Elwes : RIP Phil. Seems like yesterday we were playing improvised squash in OK. Our thoughts & prayers to his family #PhillipSeymourHoffman (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

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@TaySchilling: Tragic day. Thoughts and prayers with loved ones of the incomparable #PhilipSeymourHoffman (Tommaso Boddi / Getty Images)

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@TheRealAliL: Tragic loss. My heart is with his family. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Actor, Dies at 46 (Jason Merritt / Getty Images for Art of Elysium)

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@BilldeBlasio: Saddened by Philip Seymour Hoffman’s tragic and untimely passing. Today New York mourns the loss of one of stage and screen’s greats. (Mike Groll / Associated Press)

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@betsy_brandt: I am so heartbroken over the loss of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He will be missed. (Frazer Harrison / Getty Images for DGA)

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@iJesseWilliams: Philip Seymour Hoffman was immediately & clearly a force; a titan of his industry. Awful news. #IncredibleBodyOfWork (Ari Perilstein / Getty Images)

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@azizansari: Wow. Sad news. RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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@joshgroban: Oh no no no. Not PSH. We needed so much more from him. What a talent. RIP. (Patrick T. Fallon / AFP/ Getty Images)

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@davemorrissey64: Shocked and saddened by the news of Philip Seymour Hoffman. A great artist gone way too soon, RIP. (Amy Sussman / Invision / Associated Press)

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@GabbySidibe: My heart goes out to Philip Seymour Hoffman, his family and friends. Such a sad end to such a talented man. I’m thankful for his art. RIP (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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@DetroitWillie34 : R.I.P. Philip Seymour Hoffman!!! My Prayers go out to his family!! (Chris Carlson / Associated Press)

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@eddieizzard: This is very sad. He was a great actor and will be badly missed (Anthony Harvey / Getty Images)

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Kevin Spacey: “A tragedy to lose as supremely talented an actor as Philip Seymour Hoffman. An unspeakable loss for film, theatre & all who knew him. RIP” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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“Phillip Seymour Hoffman was a genius, brave and sweet. Can’t believe he’s gone. Huge loss. My deepest sympathy for his wife and children.” via Facebook (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

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“Very sad to hear that Phillip Seymour Hoffman has passed away. He was certainly one of the greatest actors we have ever seen... ... He certainly will be missed by all of us.” via Facebook (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times)

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“So saddened by the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He was a tremendous inspiration to me as an actor. It was a pleasure to meet him when he came to visit the set of “Will & Grace” way back when at the early stages of his incredible career. My heart goes out to his loved ones.” (via Facebook) (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

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“Unbelievable talent. The creative community has lost a true acting genius. RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman.” (via Facebook) (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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“Such shocking & sad news. RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman. One of the greatest actors of a generation and a sweet, funny and humble man.” (via Facebook) (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)

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“A great man, and a great loss. He will be missed.” (via Facebook) (Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images)

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“Life is short..celebrate and appreciate EVERY moment you have.. #RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman” (via Facebook) (Paul Buck / EPA)

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@SpikeLee: “Damn,We Lost Another Great Artist. Phillip Seymour Hoffman. God Bless You And Your Family, Rest In Peace.” (Rob Kim / Getty Images for DirecTV)

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@MarthaPlimpton: “Philip Seymour Hoffman, 1967-2014 ... Life is short. But it’s very, very wide. Rest in peace, Phil.” (Robyn Beck/ AFP/ Getty Images)

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“It would be hard to find an actor who wouldn’t agree that Philip Seymour Hoffman was one of the best there was. Heroin. Tragic.” (via Facebook) (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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@twhiddleston: “Philip Seymour Hoffman. This is so unbearably sad.” (Larry Busacca / Getty Images)

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“I am incredibly saddened by the passing of Philip Seymour Hoffman. I loved his versatility and energy as a performer. #RIP” (via Facebook> (Michael Buckner / Getty Images)

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@ledisi: “Rest in Peace Phillip Seymour Hoffman...sigh...what an amazing actor.” (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

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@StevenYeun: “RIP Phillip Seymour Hoffman. A true inspiration. Sad.” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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“I had the pleasure of sitting next to Philip at a Knicks game this past December. He will be missed.” (via Facebook) (Cindy Ord / Getty Images for Lacoste)

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@@ReallyMarcia: “I am just devastated to hear of #PhilipSeymourHoffman’s death. Horrible. Tragic. NO. xoxo m” (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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@jarpad: “‘Sad’ isn’t the word I’d use to describe a 46-year-old man throwing his life away to drugs ‘Senseless’ is more like it. ‘Stupid,’” Padecki wrote in a tweet that has since been deleted. Later adding, “I didnt mean PSH is stupid or that addiction isnt a reality. I simply meant I have a different definition of ‘tragedy.’ When I think ‘tragedy,’ I think of St Judes, of genocide, of articles I read in the paper. But, yes, either way, a death, is sad.” (Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images)

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@Alyssa_Milano: Rest with the angels, Phillip Seymour Hoffman. (Andy Kropa / Invision / Associated Press)

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@madonna: Lost another Genius! What a tragedy. Love you P.S.H. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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@billmaher: First P S Hoffman dies, then the worst super bowl ever, then Dylan does a car commercial?? Not a good day for America. (Imeh Akpanudosen / Getty Images for Warner Bros.)

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@SaraBareilles: I’m so sad about Philip Seymore Hoffman. .... Tragic loss. Drugs are ... lame and false and take beauty away from the world. And anyone who tells you different is just plain wrong. (Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)

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“Words cannot convey the devastating loss we are all feeling right now,” said a statement from Jennifer Lawrence, second left, director Francis Lawrence (not pictured), “Hunger Games” author Suzanne Collins (not pictured) and others on behalf of the the team (via Us Weekly). “Philip was a wonderful person and an exceptional talent, and our hearts are breaking. Our deepest condolences go out to his family.” (Frazer Harrison / Getty Images)

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@shawn_pyfrom: something i must share... - i just read the news about mr. philip seymour hoffman, and against the advise of others; i had to write this open letter. i can’t stay quiet anymore about this. i am an alcoholic and a drug addict.

The “Desperate Housewives” actor continued the thought in a lengthy open letter on Tumblr chronicling his own struggle with addiction. (Frazer Harrison / Getty Images)

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@woodelijah: heartbroken and shocked. what a true loss. rest in peace, Philip Seymour Hoffman

@woodelijah: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Actor of Depth, Dies at 46 ... This still doesn’t compute. Gutted. (Larry Busacca / Getty Images)

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@AlbertBrooks: R.I.P. Philip Seymour Hoffman. One of the greats of his generation. (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

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@octaviaspencer: Very sad day! R.I.P. #PhillipSeymourHoffman (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)

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@RobLowe: You are not smarter than your drug. Or more knowledgable, powerful, stronger or anything else. Addiction is an equal opportunity killer.

@RobLowe: Philip Seymour Hoffman’s sad, untimely passing has me angry. I want more great work from him! I want less destruction from drugs/alcohol. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

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@ddlovato: I wish more people would lose the stigma and treat addiction as the deadly and serious DISEASE that it is. Drugs are not something to glamorize in pop music or film to portray as harmless recreational fun. It’s not cute, “cool” or admire able. It’s very rare when people can actually predict their addiction and even then, you never know when too much is going to take their life or take a bad batch of whatever it is their using. It’s time people start really taking action on changing what we’re actually singing/rapping about these days because you never know if you could be glamorizing a certain drug to a first time user or alcoholic who could possibly end up dead because they end up suffering from the same deadly disease so many have already died from. This stuff is not something to mess with. Why risk it? Addiction IS a disease. Please spread the word so we can take the taboo out of discussing this illness and raising awareness to people of all ages. RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman.. An INCREDIBLE artist who lost his life to this horrible disease.. May you rest peacefully and in complete serenity now that your pain is gone. God Bless... (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

By Chris Lee

Feb. 2, 2014 1:07 PM PT

<i> This post has been updated with the latest developments. </i>

Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Academy Award-winning actor, was found dead of an apparent drug overdose inside his New York apartment on Sunday, New York police said.

The “Capote” actor, 46, was discovered by a business associate at 11:30 a.m. Eastern time in his Greenwich Village apartment. Hoffman was found in his bathroom with a hypodermic needle stuck in his arm, police said.

PHOTOS: Celebrities react to Hoffman’s death

Hoffman won a lead actor Oscar for portraying Truman Capote in the biopic “Capote” in 2005. He had admitted undergoing treatment for substance abuse problems but got sober in rehab. “It was anything I could get my hands on,” Hoffman told “60 Minutes” in 2006. “I liked it all.”

Last year, the versatile actor -- who starred in such films as “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire,” “Charlie Wilson’s War” and “Boogie Nights” -- reportedly checked himself into rehab for 10 days after relapsing in 2012.

Last month, Hoffman traveled to the Sundance Film Festival in Utah to promote the drama “A Most Wanted Man,” set for release this year, in which he portrays a grizzled World War II counter-terrorism operative. The actor served as an executive producer and was set to star in the upcoming Showtime comedy “Happyish,” in which he portrays the creative director of an ad agency struggling with a midlife crisis.

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Hoffman just weeks before his death

“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved Phil and appreciate the outpouring of love and support we have received from everyone,” Hoffman’s family said in a statement. “Please keep Phil in your thoughts and prayers.”

Raised in New York state primarily by his mother, a civil rights activist turned judge, Hoffman began acting at age 15 and studied theater at New York University, where he graduated in 1989. Soon afterward, he checked himself into a rehabilitation program for alcohol and drug addiction.

“I had no interest in drinking in moderation. And I still don’t,” Hoffman told the U.K.’s Guardian in 2011. “Just because all that time’s passed doesn’t mean maybe it was just a phase. That’s, you know, who I am.”

Times staff writers Tina Susman, Amy Kaufman and Yvonne Villarreal contributed reporting to this story.

ALSO:Photos: Hoffman as celebrity

Photos: Celebrities react on Twitter

Exclusive video: Hoffman just weeks before his death

chris.lee@latimes.com

Twitter: @__chrislee